Department for Transport

Cycling

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the benefits of cycling to (a) physical health, (b) mental health and (c) the environment.

Michael Ellis: The Department published a rapid evidence assessment on investing in cycling and walking in April 2017 which considered a wide range of benefits from cycling and walking, including health and the environment. The Department has also worked in collaboration with Public Health England on the November 2018 publication Cycling and walking for individual and population health benefits and Sport England on the active travel and physical activity review published in May 2019.

Road Traffic Offences

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of traffic offences in each year since 2010.

Michael Ellis: The Department has not made a formal assessment of the trends in the level of traffic offences. The Department works closely with the Home Office and the Police in understanding what more we can do to assist them in prosecuting road traffic offenders.

Roads: South West

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential economic benefits to the South West of the proposed improvements to the A303-A358-A30 corridor.

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his  Department used the re-balancing toolkit to assess the regional and local economic benefits of improving the whole A303/A358/A30 corridor.

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department used the Economic impact study produced by local authority partners in January 2019 in making an assessment of the potential merits of improving the A303/A358/A30 corridor.

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with the (a) Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, (b) the Treasury and (c) Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the wider economic benefits to the South West of the his Department’s proposed improvements to the A303/A358/A30 corridor.

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on economic growth in the South West of the planned improvements to the A303/A358/A30 corridor.

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary for transport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on growth in the South West of upgrading the A303/A30/A358 corridor.

Michael Ellis: The first Road Investment Strategy (RIS1), published in December 2014, recognised the importance of the A303/A358/A30 corridor and announced the Government’s intention to upgrade all remaining sections of the A303 between the M3 and the A358 to dual carriageway standard, together with creating a dual carriageway link from the M5 at Taunton to the A303, as part of a long-term commitment to creating a new high quality dual carriageway road to the South West. Work on this long-term commitment is already underway, with Highways England in the process of developing three major improvements during RIS1: the A303 Amesbury to Berwick Down (Stonehenge Tunnel), A303 Sparkford to Ilchester dualling, and A358 Taunton to Southfields dualling. The Government intends that subsequent Road Investment Strategies will fund the remaining improvements. The Department is using the evidence it has gathered through three years of research and public engagement to determine an affordable and deliverable investment plan for the second Road Investment Strategy (RIS2) that will be published in late 2019. Many proposals have been received for enhancement schemes to be included in RIS2 – competition for the available funding is therefore very strong. The research phase has involved engagement with other Government departments such as the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Treasury and the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy department. We are taking the findings of the local authority partners’ Economic impact study into account in the decision-making and the Government’s objectives for RIS2 include spreading economic growth across the country. Each individual scheme to improve the A303/A358/A30 corridor is being considered on its own merits, including an assessment of wider economic impacts where appropriate. Although the importance of the corridor for economic growth in the South West is already understood and being acted upon, no recent estimate has been made by the Department of the potential effect on economic growth in the South West of the planned improvements.

Driving under Influence

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to introduce the new alcohol limit for drivers.

Michael Ellis: The Government has no current plans to lower the drink drive limit. The Government considers rigorous enforcement and serious penalties for drink drivers to be effective deterrents.

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2019 to Question 243444 on East Coast Railway Line, what progress his Department has made in identifying and assessing further potential enhancements for the east coast main line; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Department is working with High Speed 2 Limited to assess the enhancements that could be delivered on the East Coast Main Line to secure the maximum benefit from the introduction of HS2 services between York and Newcastle. The Department is also working with Transport for the North to assess the proposals contained within the Northern Powerhouse Rail Strategic Outline Business Case to increase capacity and improve journey times on the route.

Network Rail: Finance

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to confirm the level of funding available to Network Rail for control periods (a) 7 from 2024 to 2029 and (b) 8 from 2029 to 2034.

Andrew Jones: Under the terms of the Railway Act 2005, the Statement of Funds Available for Control Periods 7 and 8 would most likely be published in 2022 and 2027 respectively, although the length of Control Periods is for the independent Office of Rail and Road to determine. The ongoing Williams Rail Review is also considering broader structural issues around the rail industry.

Network Rail: Finance

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had recent discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the merits of confirming Network Rail budgets (a) earlier and (b) over a longer period of time; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Secretary of State for Transport and the Chancellor of the Exchequer meet from time to time to discuss a range of relevant issues. The budget for Control Period 6 starting in April 2019 was set in 2017. In respect of future Network Rail budgets, the Department for Transport is routinely in discussions with Office for Rail and Road and industry partners including the supply chain on how best to build the evidence base needed to take future funding decisions. The ongoing Williams Rail Review is also considering broader structural issues around the rail industry.

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on improving (a) journey times, (b) capacity and (c) reliability on the east coast main line between England and Scotland; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Secretary of State recognises the importance of the East Coast Main Line for communities and businesses and holds regular discussions with the Scottish Government. The Department is investing £780m in Control Period 6 to upgrade the East Coast Main Line. In conjunction with the introduction of new trains for London North Eastern Railway (LNER), additional LNER services to Edinburgh from Autumn 2019, and Transpennine Express plans to extend its Liverpool to Newcastle service to Edinburgh from December 2019, together this will improve journey times, reliability and capacity between England and Scotland. Network Rail’s Strategic Business Plan for 2019 to 2024 for the London North Eastern and East Midlands Route explains how this investment from the Statement of Funds Available will be used to improve the resilience of the East Coast Main Line.

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to tackle the effects of the east coast main line reducing from four tracks to two north of Northallerton.

Andrew Jones: The East Coast Main Line has always reduced to two tracks at Northallerton where a line branches off towards Eaglescliffe. The East Coast Main Line Enhancement Programme will maximise the capacity available from the two tracks that continue to run north of Northallerton. Building on that starting point, the Northern Powerhouse Rail Strategic Outline Business Case presents proposals to increase track capacity to Newcastle. The Department is working with Transport for the North to refine these proposals and identify a single preferred concept.

Shipping: Minimum Wage

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on seafarers’ entitlement to the national minimum wage.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We are currently in the process of implementing this policy and will be laying an SI when Parliamentary time allows. I have met with my Ministerial counterpart at BEIS and we will continue to engage going forwards. My officials are also in regular contact with their counterparts to ensure smooth progression of this policy.

London International Shipping Week

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support his Department provided to the organisers of London International Shipping Week 2019 from January 2018 to 20 June 2019.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Government is pleased to champion London International Shipping Week 2019, building on the success of previous London International Shipping Weeks. In the six years since its launch, it has grown to become the premier event of its type in the world. The Department for Transport is one of the three delivery partners working to deliver London International Shipping Week 2019. The Department co-ordinates HMG input and activities, representing HMG views to the other delivery partners. Leaders from every sector of the global maritime industry will gather to take part in more than 200 meetings, seminars and functions. London International Shipping Week will send a strong message to the international maritime community about the Government’s ambitions for a Global Britain and our commitment to maintain the UK as the global maritime centre of choice, helping UK maritime businesses increase exports, win business and attract inward investment.

Tonnage Tax

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the future of the tonnage tax scheme.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: I refer the honourable gentleman to my previous answer (254181). I have met with the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury on more than one occasion recently, with Tonnage Tax being a core agenda item. Officials have also had regular and productive discussions with their counterparts in HMRC and HMT about the current and future Tonnage Tax regime.

Transport: Infrastructure

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much capital funding from the public purse has been allocated to transport infrastructure projects in each region of England for 2018-19 to 2020-21; and what estimate he has made of that funding per head of population in each of those regions.

Michael Ellis: The National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline 2018, published by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority sets out all capital investment funded by central government in English regions for the period 2018/19 to 2020/21. The regional analysis of the pipeline shows the funding per head for each English region, which is set out below:  NICP 2018 Central Government Transport investment 18/19-20/21Investment Per CapitaAnnual Average (£)East Midlands264East of England196London183North East154North West333South East329South West171West Midlands255Yorkshire and The Humber180

Taxis: Disability

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to introduce mandatory disability equality training for (a) minicab and (b) taxi drivers.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: I know that disability awareness training can provide taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) drivers with the skills, knowledge and confidence to give disabled passengers the assistance they need, and am clear that licensing authorities should use their existing powers to require drivers to complete it. On 12th February the Government published its response to the report of the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxis and PHV licensing, indicating its intention to introduce mandatory disability awareness training as part of National Minimum Standards when Parliamentary time allows.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Wigan

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether HS2 Hybrid trains will travel through Wigan station.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 Conventional Compatible trains will travel through Wigan in all phases of HS2. Wigan North Western station, will be served by HS2 trains following completion of HS2 Phase One in 2026, and by 2033 will be served by HS2 trains from London, Birmingham, Preston and Scotland.

Northern Ireland Office

Universal Credit: Northern Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if she will take steps to review the mitigation measures which apply to universal credit claimants which are due to expire in 2020 in the continued absence of a functioning Northern Ireland Assembly.

John Penrose: The Department for Communities (DfC) in Northern Ireland is responsible for the delivery of the various mitigation schemes relating to welfare reform in Northern Ireland. Its officials are ensuring that appropriate advice in relation to welfare mitigations is available for an incoming Minister.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Boilers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2019 to Question 258963 on Boilers, how the variables to which he refers affect the efficiency of the boiler itself as distinct from the whole heating system; and if will he make a statement.

Chris Skidmore: Of the variables referred to, those that impact the efficiency of the boiler itself are the heat distribution system, comprising emitters, pipes and pumps and the user controls. Condensing boiler efficiency is typically improved by a lower water return temperature. The design, efficacy and maintenance of the heat distribution system can impact this temperature. For example, an undersized system will require a higher flow temperature making it more difficult to achieve a low return temperature. User controls such as timers and thermostats can impact when the boiler turns on and off. The rate of this (cycling) can also impact the efficiency of the boiler with rapid cycling being potentially detrimental to efficiency. User controlled radiator valves can affect the flow rate through the system also impacting flow and return temperatures and cycling affecting boiler efficiency.

Boilers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2019 to Question 258963 on Boilers, what steps he is taking to ensure that domestic boilers comply in situ with the 92 per cent efficiency rate as set out in the Domestic Building Services Compliance Guide, pages 10 and 18.

Chris Skidmore: Local authorities have powers under the Building Act 1984 to enforce the building regulations, including fixed building services such as boiler installations, and have work altered or removed that does not comply. The Building Regulations and Gas Safe rules of registration require that Gas Safe registered businesses comply with their geographical area regulations by notifying any relevant appliances they have installed to the Local Authority. Failure to comply can result in disciplinary action and can ultimately result in traders being struck off the Gas Safe Register. An initial assessment of Boiler Plus planned for later this year will reveal if there are significant instances of non-compliance. To date, no evidence has come to light to suggest gas boilers below 92% ErP are being installed in English homes.

Boilers: Natural Gas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of the statement in the Answer to Question 255264 on 24 May 2019 that there is no evidence that boilers with an efficiency below 92 per cent continued to be sold beyond the coming into force date of the current standards, with the statement in Answer to Question 245593 on 1 May 2019 that only the majority of boilers on the market met or exceeded the minimum efficiency requirement of 92 per cent when the new standards were introduced.

Chris Skidmore: The statements made with respect to these two questions are fully compatible. The 2016 consultation asked the boiler industry what would be an appropriate lead-in period to allow traders to make preparations, such as clearing old stock, ahead of new standards coming into force. A majority of respondents stated that three months would be sufficient. The government provided a six month lead-in period, to ensure that adequate time was allowed for all market participants.

Waste Heat Recovery

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2019 to Question 259850, which parties were shown the results of the standard assessment procedure scientific integrity group findings.

Chris Skidmore: The feedback from the Standard Assessment Procedure Scientific Integrity Group (SAPSIG) was supplied to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the secretariat of SAPSIG (Robust Details Ltd.), the Building Research Establishment, and the company concerned.

Waste Heat Recovery

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2019 to Question 259850, which manufacturers of flue gas heat recovery systems have discussed the representations of their own products with the Building Research Establishment.

Chris Skidmore: All manufacturers of flue gas heat recovery systems and other products in the Product Characteristics Database (PCDB) communicate with the Building Research Establishment (BRE) on the representation of their products in the database.

Boilers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the finding that there is therefore an increased risk that boilers will in fact be non-compliant, in the Building Research Establishment's briefing of 7 February 2018 entitled The future of domestic boiler performance metrics in the UK, what steps his Department (a) has taken and (b) plans to take to tackle that risk.

Chris Skidmore: The Building Research Establishment (BRE) paper does not find that there is an increased risk that boilers will be non-compliant. BEIS officials worked closely with BRE to assess this risk when the matter was first raised in 2018, and agreed that non-compliance is not the correct interpretation of their paper. They have since published a clarification on their own website, to ensure their work is not misused to make inappropriate claims. That clarification can be found at the following url: https://www.bregroup.com/press-releases/statement-regarding-energy-efficiency-labelling-of-boilers/

Waste Heat Recovery

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to his Answer of 12 June 2019 to Question 259850 on Waste Heat Recovery, if he will publish the standard assessment procedure scientific integrity group findings with personal details and the names of the manufacturers redacted.

Chris Skidmore: The analysis of the Standard Assessment Procedure Scientific Integrity Group contains information which is of a commercially sensitive nature for the companies involved. Redacting company names would not obviate the risk that disclosure presents to their commercial interests. The Department took this into account in its decision not to publish the analysis more widely.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Sustainable Development

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU with no deal on his Department’s ability to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 7 in the UK.

Chris Skidmore: Leaving the EU, either with or without a deal, will not affect our commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals or in ensuring an affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy system. A record 52.8 per cent of our electricity was generated from clean sources in 2018 and energy bills for the average household in the UK have fallen by 14 per cent in real terms since 2010. Building on our Clean Growth Strategy, the Government has laid draft legislation to set a new net zero greenhouse gas emissions target for the UK, to be delivered by 2050. This world-leading target will bring to an end our contribution to climate change.The UK’s first Voluntary National Review (VNR) will be published shortly. The VNR will review UK action both domestically and internationally in support of Goal 7. It will also outline key challenges and next steps, recognising that while progress is being made, there is more work to do.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Sustainable Development

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU with no deal on his Department’s ability to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 13 in the UK.

Chris Skidmore: Leaving the EU with or without a deal will not affect our commitment to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 13. We remain a signatory to the Paris Agreement; will honour our commitments to provide climate finance; are co-leading with Egypt the Resilience and Adaptation theme at the UN Climate Action Summit in September; and we have bid to host COP26 in 2020 in partnership with Italy. Underpinning all of this is our domestic ambition, which will continue to be enshrined in law through the Climate Change Act 2008. Building on our Clean Growth Strategy, on 12th June, the Government laid draft legislation to set a new net zero greenhouse gas emissions target for the UK, to be delivered by 2050.The UK’s first Voluntary National Review (VNR) will be published shortly. The VNR will review UK action both domestically and internationally in support of Goal 13. It will also outline key challenges and next steps, recognising that while significant progress is being made, there is more work to do.

Climate Change

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 18 June 2019 to Question 262224, which councils have (a) declared a climate emergency (b) set a target for net zero emissions by 2030; and whether any councils set other dates for net zero greenhouse gas emissions.

Chris Skidmore: A list of councils that have declared a climate emergency can be found here: http://www.caceonline.org/councils-that-have-declared.html Several of these councils have committed to becoming carbon neutral, with each council responsible for setting its own target date for achieving net zero emissions.

Carbon Emissions

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 18 June 2019 to Question 262226, which (a) organisations from the medical sector and (b) other organisations have contacted his Department; and whether any of those organisations called on the Government to meet the net zero target by (i) 2030 and (ii) by any other date earlier than 2050.

Chris Skidmore: Businesses, the scientific community and civil society have been vocal in encouraging us to set a net zero target. Our independent advisors - the Committee on Climate Change - make clear in their report that they do not currently consider it credible for the UK to aim to reach net-zero emissions earlier than 2050. We have considered their advice and are legislating in line with it, to end the UK’s contribution to climate change.

Boilers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2019 to Question 258961, which body determines the tests on domestic boilers, and what organisations are represented by that body.

Chris Skidmore: The test for the energy efficiency of boilers is set by CEN, a European Standardisation Organisation. Its national members are the national standardization bodies of 28 European Union countries, the Republic of North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.

Boilers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2019 to Question 258965, how test conditions for domestic boilers differ from real world in situ conditions.

Chris Skidmore: The test conditions in labs for domestic boilers assume steady state operation, weighted by full and part power measurements. The energy ratings given to boilers are therefore intended to provide a fair basis for comparison of the energy efficiency of different models. The wide variation in the energy efficiency of buildings that boilers are installed in and in user behaviours makes it difficult to consistently test boiler efficiency in real life conditions.

Boilers

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2019 to Question 258965, whether test conditions for domestic boilers allow for any features or functions of those boilers to be changed or disabled during the test.

Chris Skidmore: The required test conditions are given in sections 8.1.1 and 8.1.2 of BS EN 15502-1. These include required fuel characteristics, control mode settings, etc. to ensure that the test results are repeatable and comparable. Limitations are stated, for example section 8.1.2.5 prescribes the requirement for tests to take place under thermal equilibrium conditions, with precautions taken to prevent thermostats or adjustable controls or an electronic temperature control system operating and affecting the gas rate, unless necessary for the specific test being conducted.

Measurement: Metrication

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of switching to metric measurements for distance.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Productivity

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of a four day working week on productivity.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Sudan: Demonstrations

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of reports that the Sudanese security and military services (a) used violence against and (b) raped peaceful protesters under the orders of the Transitional Military Council on 10 June 2019 in Khartoum; and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: On 3 June, the Foreign Secretary condemned the attack on protestors by Sudanese security forces, and held the Transitional Military Council (TMC) fully responsible. On 6 June, I summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express our grave concerns at the use of all forms of violence, including sexual violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities. This was reiterated in a recent statement issued by the EU Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) on 17 June, which called for the immediate cessation of all violence against the Sudanese people, including extrajudicial, arbitrary and summary killings, beatings and sexual and gender-based violence, arrests and disappearances.We have been consistent in public and in private that there must be accountability for the crimes committed by members of the former regime. The UK strongly supports the mission of the International Criminal Court; due legal process must be followed. I also set out the UK's position at the FAC that called for the human rights of all Sudanese people to be respected, and the resumption of the political process leading to an agreed peaceful transfer of power to a civilian-led government, as demanded by the Sudanese people.

Sudan: Internet

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for human rights in Sudan of reports of a block on internet access in that country in June 2019.

Harriett Baldwin: ​The Foreign Secretary's statement on 6 June called for internet and full media freedom to be restored to avoid escalation. I summoned the Sudanese Ambassador on 6 June and called on the Transitional Military Council to lift all restrictions on internet access which has been unavailable since 3 June. I stressed the importance of free access to the internet for all Sudanese citizens as part of their basic human right and living in a free and open society. I expressed our concern about the impact this had on broader freedoms in Sudan.

Sudan: Demonstrations

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to send a diplomat from Sudan to press for an end to the violence against demonstrators in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: Our Embassy in Khartoum regularly calls on members of the Transitional Military Council (TMC) both in public and directly to take the steps needed to end the violence and improve the situation in Sudan, including the release of all political detainees.Our Ambassador and other British Embassy Officials in Khartoum regularly meet with all elements of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), encouraging them to be inclusive in their approach and seek a realistic compromise. Talks between the TMC and FFC have resumed via mediators.The UK has called for the human rights of all Sudanese people to be respected, and the resumption of the political process leading to an agreed peaceful transfer of power to a civilian-led government, as demanded by the Sudanese people. We will continue to engage with all sides to support a settlement that works for all Sudanese people.

Sudan: Human Rights

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that Government's policies on (a) the protection of civilians and (b) atrocity prevention are implemented in Sudan; and what assessment he has made of the effect of those policies on bilateral relations with that country.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK continues to engage with a range of opposition, members of the protest movement as well as the Transitional Military Council (TMC). The UK, alongside Troika partners Norway and the US, has called for all sides to engage in an inclusive dialogue that leads to a swift, orderly and peaceful transition to civilian rule. On 29 May our Ambassador delivered this message to Yassir Arman of Sudan People's Liberation Movement - North (SPLM-N) and encouraged all armed movements to return to Sudan and take part in the talks to agree a civilian-led transition and achieve peace. We have condemned the way that the opposition leaders have since been treated by the TMC since they returned.On 4 June in a joint Troika statement, we condemned the recent violent attacks by Sudanese security forces against peaceful protestors in Sudan which left many civilians dead or injured. We also expressed serious concern over TMC's announcement that it would cease negotiations and called for an agreed transfer of power to a civilian-led government. Our Embassy in Khartoum calls on members of the Transitional Military Council both in public and directly to take the steps needed to improve the situation in Sudan, including the release of all political detaineesOn 6 June, I summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express our grave concerns at the use of violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities. The UK has called for the human rights of all Sudanese people to be respected, and the resumption of the political process leading to an agreed peaceful transfer of power to a civilian-led government, as demanded by the Sudanese people. We will continue to engage with all sides to support a settlement that works for all Sudanese people.

Sudan: Sanctions

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the Government's policy is on targeted sanctions against members of the Transitional Military Council in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: ​We will continue to work with Troika (UK, US and Norway), EU, UN and regional allies to agree on the most effective course of action, including a range of measures, which could include sanctions. The UK's commitment and respect for human rights and accountability, including through the UN Security Council, is steadfast.

Sudan: Demonstrations

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking at the United Nations to establish an independent investigation into the attacks on protesters in Sudan, and sexual and gender-based violence by all armed groups in that country.

Harriett Baldwin: We have said in public and in private, that there must be justice and accountability for the crimes committed by members of the former regime. The UK strongly supports the mission of the International Criminal Court; due legal process must be followed. The UK, through the UN Security Council issued a statement on 11 June that called for the immediate cessation of violence against civilians and emphasised the importance of human rights, protection of civilians, accountability and justice. They also noted the announcement by the Transitional Military Council to investigate the incidents.The EU Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) issued a statement on 17 June, which called for all human rights violations and abuses committed to be investigated in an independent and transparent manner, and perpetrators held accountable for their acts. In both the UN and the African Union there is widespread concern about the situation, as well as ongoing considerations of how to hold the Sudanese authorities accountable.

Sudan: Politics and Government

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help support a peaceful transition of power from the military in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK continues to engage with a range of opposition, members of the protest movement as well as the Transitional Military Council (TMC). We have frequently called for the Sudanese authorities, both in public and directly with them in Khartoum, to ensure that peaceful protests are not met with violence and those responsible for the injuries and deaths of protestors are held to account. The UK, alongside Troika partners Norway and the US, has called for all sides to engage in an inclusive dialogue that leads to a swift, orderly and peaceful transition to civilian rule. On 4 June in a joint Troika statement, we condemned the recent violent attacks by Sudanese security forces against peaceful protestors in Sudan which left many civilians dead or injured. We also expressed serious concern over TMC's announcement that it would cease negotiations and called for an agreed transfer of power to a civilian-led government.On 6 June, I summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express our grave concerns at the use of violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities. The UK has called for the human rights of all Sudanese people to be respected, and the resumption of the political process leading to an agreed peaceful transfer of power to a civilian-led government, as demanded by the Sudanese people. We will continue to engage with all sides to support a settlement that works for all Sudanese people.The UK also continues to promote comprehensive peace negotiations through our role in the Troika. Alongside the US and Norway we engage regularly with the African Union (AU) building on long standing support to the AU's mediation efforts to encourage peace and security in Sudan.

Members: Correspondence

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich of 28 March 2019 in relation to Mr Yousef Al-Shehhi.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The FCO did not receive the letter until 19 June 2019, however a response was sent on 21 June. A copy of the response has been emailed to the hon. Member.

Israel: Palestinians

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department will be represented at the Bahrain Middle East conference on 25 and 26 June 2019.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK will be represented at the economic workshop in Bahrain by the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Robert Jenrick MP.

Sudan: Diplomatic Service

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department will be making extra resources available to support his staff in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: On 5 June the decision was taken to withdraw non-essential British Embassy staff and dependents from Sudan. We are keeping the current staffing levels at our Embassy in Khartoum under constant review, but our key concern remains the safety of staff and dependants. We have reinforced our Sudan team in London to provide more support to our Embassy and to handle the increased UK-based policy work on this issue.

Papua: Internally Displaced People

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Government of West Papua on the displacement of civilians and children from the Nduga area following military violence in that country.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including Papua. Within this framework we support the efforts of the authorities and civil society to address the needs and aspirations of the Papuan people. Officials at our Embassy in Jakarta, including the Ambassador, visit Papua regularly. Officials press the Indonesian authorities to address legitimate human rights concerns, including upholding the right of all citizens to peacefully protest, and ensure the sustainable and equitable development of the province, through political dialogue. We have condemned the attack on construction workers by armed separatists in December 2018 in Nduga district. We have called on the authorities to ensure a proportionate security response.

Sudan: Politics and Government

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that the transitional military council of Sudan acts in good faith during its negotiations with the opposition on forming a civilian government.

Harriett Baldwin: On 3 June, the Foreign Secretary condemned the attack on protestors by Sudanese security forces, and held the Transitional Military Council (TMC) fully responsible. We also expressed serious concern over the TMC's announcement that it would cease negotiations, and we called for an agreed transfer of power to a civilian-led government. We have called on the TMC to take the steps needed to improve the situation in Sudan, including the release of all political detainees.The TMC should now take appropriate steps to provide confidence for protestors and create the conditions necessary for the resumption of dialogue, which includes an investigation into the 3 June attack, an end to the blocking of the internet, and a free media being allowed. We have said that the TMC must re-engage in a political process with the protestors and opposition to ensure an agreed transfer of power to a civilian-led authority, in a swift, orderly and peaceful manner. The UK will continue to engage with all sides to support a settlement that works for all Sudanese people.

Council of Europe: Finance

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of the plans of the General Secretary of the Council of Europe to decease the budget for the Council's youth sector activities.

Dr Andrew Murrison: ​No decision has been taken to decrease the budget of the Council of Europe's (CoE) youth department. The suggestion to decouple the youth budget from the main budget is just one option proposed to manage the CoE's budget deficit following Russia's non-payment of its contributions and as part of wider reforms and efficiency savings. The UK's priority remains to protect the core functions of the CoE, including the European Court of Human Rights and the European Convention system. The UK continues to urge Russia to abide by its freely entered into and legally binding obligation to pay outstanding contributions in full.

Julian Assange

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has formally responded to the findings of the 31 May report from the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, following his visit to Julian Assange in HMP Belmarsh.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK will respond to the 'Urgent Appeal' from the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, received on 27 May, within the 60 day deadline. We support the important work of the Special Rapporteur's mandate, but we disagree with a number of his observations on this case. Our response will be published in due course.

Attorney General

Vagrancy Act 1824: Prosecutions

Louise Haigh: To ask the Attorney General, how many charges have been brought under the Vagrancy Act 1824 in each year since 2010.

Lucy Frazer: The data provided below shows the total number of offences in which a prosecution by the Crown Prosecution Service commenced at magistrates’ courts under the Vagrancy Act 1824 and associated legislation. Total Charges under the 1824 Vagrancy Act and associated legislation2010/112011/122012/132013/142014/152015/162016/172017/182018/19368631192660373238502958224918452146Data Source: CPS Case Management Information Systems The figures relate to the number of offences and not the number of individual defendants. An individual defendant may be charged with more than one offence.

Department of Health and Social Care

Genito-urinary Medicine: Finance

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to allocate additional funding for the provision of sexual health services in the next four years.

Seema Kennedy: The Government provides funding to local authorities for their public health responsibilities, including sexual health services, through a public health grant. It is for individual local authorities to decide their spending priorities based on an assessment of local need, including the need for sexual health services taking account of their statutory duties. They are required by regulations to provide services for sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment and contraception.Future funding for local authorities’ public health responsibilities will be determined in the next spending review.

NHS: Digital Technology

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the NHS has access to faster digital technology systems to enable practices to be run more efficiently.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We are committed to ensuring that all practices have access to faster digital technology systems to enable to high quality, effective healthcare services that are responsive to all patients’ needs.We have rolled out National Health Service WiFi across 96.8% of general practitioner (GP) practices, benefiting the care of an estimated 57.8 million patients. The new Health and Social Care Network (HSCN) arrangements are enabling clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to obtain faster data network connections for GPs and all GP practices are expected to have migrated from their legacy connectivity to new HSCN services by the end of 2020.The fourth edition of the GP IT Operating Model requires CCGs to adopt appropriately-sized HSCN connectivity capable of supporting their current and future GP business needs and states they should upgrade any existing copper-based asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) connections providing primary connectivity to practice premises to fibre-based connections such as Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) or Fibre to the Premise (FTTP) as a minimum.

Body Modification: Training

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that businesses offering tattooing or piercings possess the appropriate training and qualifications.

Seema Kennedy: Local authorities are responsible for regulating and monitoring businesses offering cosmetic body piercing, including ear piercing, permanent tattooing, semi-permanent skin colouring (micropigmentation, semi-permanent make-up and temporary tattooing), electrolysis and acupuncture. Although there is no formal qualification needed for someone to practise in any of these vocations, all LAs require those providing tattooing or piercing to be licensed. Whilst the licensing process will not be dependent upon qualifications held by the operator, they would be required to be competent in methods of cleansing and sterilising of equipment.We consider this is an area where progress can be most quickly and effectively made by practitioners, their organisations, industry bodies, training bodies and enforcement authorities working together to agree on suitable standards of good practice and competency.Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, piercing and tattoo businesses have a legal duty to protect the health of employees and persons other than their employees, who may be affected by the practices. This information is available at the following link:http://www.hse.gov.uk/legislation/hswa.htm

Eating Disorders

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of funding allocated to (a) NHS Trusts and (b) Clinical Commissioning Groups for eating disorder treatments; and what steps he is taking to ensure the effectiveness of the use of that funding by (i) NHS Trusts and (ii) Clinical Commissioning Groups.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The NHS Long Term Plan committed at least a further £2.3 billion a year to mental health services by 2023/24. This investment will transform and expand services for people with mental health conditions, including eating disorders, building on our current targets.The mental health investment standard (MHIS) requires clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to increase the amount spent on mental health by at least as much as their overall budget. In 2018/19 it is expected all CCGs will achieve the MHIS level of investment.We have set up the first waiting times standard to improve access to eating disorder services for children and young people with the aim that 95% of children with an eating disorder will receive treatment within one week for urgent cases and within four weeks for routine cases by 2020/21. The latest available waiting times figures against this standard, indicate that NHS England is on track to meet it by 2020/21. Data from the quarter 4 January to March 2019 shows 80.6% of all patients started urgent treatment within one week and 82.4% of patients started routine treatment within four weeks.The NHS Long Term Plan commits to testing four-week waiting times for adult and older adult community mental health teams, in selected local areas. The exact scope and timelines of these pilots are yet to be finalised.

North Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report of 12 June 2019 entitled Missed opportunities: What lessons can be learned from failings at the North Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the findings of this report are shared across the NHS.

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report of 12 June 2019 entitled Missed opportunities: What lessons can be learned from failings at the North Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, what steps his Department is taking to (a) address the criticisms of leadership at that Trust and (b) ensure that mental health Trusts across the NHS are operating and delivering safe, high quality services for patients.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s report recommended that NHS Improvement conduct a review of the cases detailed in the report once the Health and Safety Executive investigation and any related activity has been completed. NHS Improvement will make recommendations to the Department once its review has been completed. The review will also ensure that the learning from these tragic incidents is shared with mental health providers across the country.NHS Improvement has reported that there is now a stable leadership team at the successor Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust under a new chief executive.In October 2017, NHS Improvement and the Care Quality Commission launched a national patient safety improvement programme for mental health trusts, which is committed to engaging with all mental health trusts by the end of March 2020.

Smoking: Health Education

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the annual Stoptober campaign in getting smokers (a) to switch to vaping and (b) to quit entirely.

Seema Kennedy: The primary objective of Stoptober is to generate quit attempts amongst smokers in England. Latest available data show that 16% of smokers in England reported making a Stoptober quit attempt in 2017.Although switching to vaping is not the primary objective of the campaign, latest figures show that 42% of smokers who made a Stoptober quit reported using an e-cigarette in 2017.In 2017, 8% of smokers making a Stoptober quit attempt reported still not smoking by early November. Public Health England does not measure beyond this point.

Smoking: Health Education

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the findings by Public Health England that e-cigarettes are around 95 per cent less harmful to health than traditional cigarettes are reaching the target audience; and if he will make a statement.

Seema Kennedy: The Government is committed to helping people to quit smoking by permitting innovative technologies that minimise the risk of harm, and through maximising the availability of safer alternatives to smoking. Public Health England continues to provide smokers and the public with clear, evidence based and accurate information on the relative harm of nicotine, e-cigarettes, other nicotine delivery systems and smoked tobacco, to enable informed decision-making. There were over 2.5 million e-cigarettes users in England in 2017, an increase from 1.6 million in 2014. Over half of those using e-cigarettes have quit smoking for good. Adult smoking prevalence in England is at its lowest level on record at 14.9%.

Mental Health Services

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the proportion of people who seek mental health support through the NHS qualifying to receive such support.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We have made no such estimate.The Government is committed to ensuring that all those who need support with their mental health are able to access the services they require in a timely manner based on their clinical need.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Health Services

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of provision of local (a) services and (b) for people with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Seema Kennedy: As with the vast majority of National Health Service care, the design and delivery of services for people with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) is the responsibility of local clinical commissioning groups. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline ‘Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (or encephalopathy): Diagnosis and management of CFS/ME in adults and children’, published in 2007, sets out best practice for clinicians and commissioners in the diagnosis, treatment and support of patients with CFS/ME. The guidance can be found at the following link:www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg53

Sedatives and Hypnotics: Children and Young People

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to provide sedation services at all NHS Trust for children and young people with phobias to needles.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The use of sedation services is a matter of clinical judgement. Training in engaging children and young people forms the basis of training in all paediatric specialties, for all grades of staff. Clinicians are trained to approach a child or young person in a sensitive, skilled and friendly manner and crucially, make a judgement as to how any procedure or treatment will be administered in the best interest of the child. Treatment decisions should always be made by doctors based on patients’ clinical needs.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence provides guidance on using sedation for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. This covers the assessment, preparation, training and monitoring needed when using sedation in people aged under 19. This guidance can be found at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/Guidance/CG112

Dental Services: Bradford

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 June to Question 261175 on Dental Services: Bradford, how many out of hours NHS dentists were available in (a) Shipley constituency and (b) Bradford district each day in April 2019.

Seema Kennedy: The data is not held in the format requested.

Arthritis: Mental Health Services

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NICE Guideline CG91, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with rheumatoid arthritis have access to (a) cognitive behavioural therapy and (b) other appropriate psychological interventions.

Seema Kennedy: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Guidance ‘Rheumatoid Arthritis in Adults: management’, published in July 2018, sets out best practice on the diagnosis, treatment, care support of people living with the condition. The guidance recommends patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are managed by a multidisciplinary team and have access to non-pharmacological management including physiotherapy, occupational therapy and psychological support. Psychological interventions (for example, relaxation, stress management and cognitive coping skills) can be used to help adults with RA adjust to living with their condition. NICE has also published guidance on ‘Depression in adults with a chronic physical health problem: recognition and management’, which provides advice and guidance for the appropriate use of cognitive behavioural therapy in the management of a long-term condition. Both sets of guidance can be found via the following links:www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng100www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg91

Arthritis: Diagnosis

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that primary care professionals are adequately trained to spot the early signs of rheumatoid arthritis.

Seema Kennedy: The Royal College of General Practitioners’ (RCGP) curriculum statement, ‘Professional & Clinical Modules’, makes clear the importance of a prompt diagnosis and treatment of inflammatory arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA).The condition is identified as a key area of clinical knowledge in the RCGP Advanced Knowledge Test (AKT) content guide. The AKT is a summative assessment of the knowledge base that underpins general practice in the United Kingdom within the context of the National Health Service and is a key part of GPs’ qualifying exams.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) Quality Standard ‘Rheumatoid arthritis in over 16s’, updated in July 2018, emphasises the need for early for urgent referral to a specialist rheumatologist on suspicion of rheumatoid arthritis within three weeks.

Mental Health Services: Schools

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to introduce mental health support in schools in relation to the effect of social media.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We are aware of the potential health harms of screen use and social media, on both the mental and physical health of young people and are undertaking several actions relevant to this area.In line with the commitments set out in the NHS Long Term Plan, on 20 December the Government announced the first wave of 25 trailblazer sites that will test the plans set out in ‘Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision: a green paper’, published in December 2017.These new plans will significantly increase the availability of mental health support to children and young people, including creating new Mental Health Support Teams working in and near schools and colleges to support children and young people with mild to moderate mental health conditions. Mental Health Support Teams will provide brand new services and are intended to offer earlier help and intervention with issues such as online harms and the adverse effects of social media.

Gambling: Health Services

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the NHS of treating gambling addictions in 2017-18.

Seema Kennedy: The Department does not hold information on the cost to the National Health Service of treating gambling addictions. The NHS Long Term Plan has made a commitment to investing in expanding NHS specialist clinics to help more people with serious gambling problems. The first NHS gambling clinic for children will open this year as part of a new network of services for addicts being rolled out as part of the NHS Long Term Plan. Up to 14 new NHS clinics are being opened - starting with the NHS Northern Gambling Service in Leeds this summer, followed by Manchester and Sunderland. The National Problem Gambling Clinic in London will also offer specialist help for children and young people aged 13 to 25 as part of an expansion.

NHS: Sexual Offences

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of complaints of sexual (a) harassment and (b) abuse made by NHS staff against (i) patients and (ii) NHS staff.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of NHS staff members that have left the NHS as a result of an incident of sexual harassment or abuse at work.

Stephen Hammond: The Department is committed to supporting trusts in their responsibility for tackling all forms of harassment and abuse including sexual via the Social Partnership Forum’s ‘Creating positive workplace cultures and tackling bullying in the NHS - a collective call to action’, the Alliance of Healthcare Organisations committed to civility and respect throughout the National Health Service and the new offer for staff being developed as part of the People Plan.Statutory guidance will be issued later this year to clarify for employers what reasonable steps they should be taking, as required under the Equality Act 2010, to protect staff as well as the consultation on potential new legislation aimed at further deterring sexual harassment.The Department does not collect data on the number of complaints of sexual harassment and abuse against patients or NHS staff, as many are dealt with locally in line with the NHS Complaints procedure. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-nhs-constitution-for-england/how-do-i-give-feedback-or-make-a-complaint-about-an-nhs-serviceThe NHS Staff Survey records staff reporting whether they have been bullied, abused or physically assaulted but these figures are not broken down to separately identify sexual harassment or abuse.NHS Digital publishes reasons for leaving data as part of the Hospital and Community Health Services workforce statistics for England. This can be found at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-workforce-statistics/december-2018However, the data does not go into the level of granularity of staff leaving as a result of sexual harassment or abuse at work.

Smoking: Regulation

Eddie Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Government has made of the merits of a regulatory environment in which (a) advertising rules, (b) taxes and (c) other regulations reflect the relative health impacts of (i) e-cigarettes, (ii) heat-not-burn tobacco and (iii) other reduced harm smoking products.

Seema Kennedy: The Government seeks to ensure that the regulatory and environment reflects the relative harms of different tobacco and nicotine products. The European Union Tobacco Products Directive 2014 placed limits on the sale and merchandising of tobacco and tobacco related products. This was transposed in to United Kingdom law through the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations (TRPR) 2016 and forms part of comprehensive regulatory framework to reduce public health harms caused by smoking. This framework acknowledges e-cigarettes are not tobacco products and has fewer restrictions than them.To reduce the affordability of tobacco, HM Treasury continue to apply the Tobacco Duty Escalator to cigarettes at 2% above inflation as outlined in the Budget 2018, with hand rolling tobacco increasing by an additional 1%.The Government has a statutory obligation to conduct a Post Implementation Review of the TRPR by May 2021. The Government will review where the UK’s exit from the EU offers opportunities to re-appraise current regulation to ensure this continues to protect the nation’s health.

Tobacco: Packaging

Eddie Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will bring forward the commencement date to before 2021, of the review of the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015.

Seema Kennedy: There are no plans to do so. The Government remains committed to undertake the post implementation review of the Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015 by May 2021 in accordance with its legal duties.

Hospital Beds

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of hospital beds in the NHS.

Stephen Hammond: Bed availability and occupancy is managed at a local level. Hospitals have a responsibility in ensuring that they are operating with the necessary beds available to support effective patient flow and safety.The NHS Long Term Plan states:“We have also been realistic about inevitable continuing demand growth from our growing and aging population, increasing concern about areas of longstanding unmet need, and the expanding frontiers of medical science and innovation. In the modelling underpinning this Long Term Plan we have therefore not locked-in an assumption that its increased investment in community and primary care will necessarily reduce the need for hospital beds”.

Eating Disorders: Mental Health Services

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to commence the proposed pilot schemes of four-week waiting time targets for adult eating disorder treatment.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS England has advised that the waiting time commitments made in the NHS Long Term Plan will form part of the overall testing of new models of primary and community mental health care in 2019/20 and 2020/21.

Sexually Transmitted Infections

Dr Paul Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the correlation between reductions in public health funding and increases in rates of (a) syphilis and (b) gonorrhoea.

Dr Paul Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for sexual health services in England to tackle the increase in sexually transmitted infections since 2017.

Dr Paul Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what effect the 25 per cent reduction in sexual health budgets since 2014 has had on the rates of (a) syphilis, (b) gonorrhoea and (c) chlamydia.

Dr Paul Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the sustainability of the demand for sexual health services as set out in the sexual health statistics released by Public Health England on 4 June.

Seema Kennedy: Increases in rates of syphilis, gonorrhoea and chlamydia are likely to be due to a number of factors. These include increases in both the number of people attending sexual health services and the number of tests for sexually transmitted infections. Other factors include, better detection of infection and behavioural changes such as an increase in partner numbers and condomless anal intercourse, as well as, for some men who have sex with men, ‘chemsex’ and group sex facilitated by geosocial networking applications. Local authorities will receive £3.1 billion in 2019/20, ring-fenced exclusively for use on public health, including sexual health. We are investing over £16 billion in local authority public health services over the five years of the 2015 Spending Review until 2020/21. It is for individual local authorities to decide their spending priorities based on an assessment of local need, including the need for sexual health services taking account of their statutory duties. My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had numerous discussions with cabinet ministers to discuss a range of topics in advance of the Spending Review. Public health funding for 2020 onwards, including for sexual health services, will be considered carefully in the next Spending Review, in the light of the available evidence. Local authorities are required by regulations to provide comprehensive open access sexual health services, including provision for sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment and contraception. The latest statistics show that more people are now accessing sexual health services. Attendances have increased by 7% between 2017 and 2018 (from 3,337,677 to 3,561,548). This continues the trend of increases in attendances seen over the past five years. To help manage the overall increase in demand, local authorities are increasingly commissioning online services to manage lower risk and asymptomatic patients. These services have the potential to reach groups not currently engaged with clinic services.

Cancer: Children

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will hold discussions with his counterparts in the devolved administrations on the variation in rates of children diagnosed with cancer across the UK.

Seema Kennedy: No such discussions are planned. NHS England is currently out to ‎consultation on new service specifications for children's cancer services in England. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.engage.england.nhs.uk/consultation/childrens-cancer-services ‎The consultation closes on 4 August 2019.

Alcoholic Drinks: Death

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the prevalence of alcohol related deaths in the 10 (a) most and (b) least deprived local authorities in the UK in each of the last seven years.

Seema Kennedy: There is a marked and significant difference in the alcohol-related mortality rates between the most and least deprived local authorities in England. This inequality gap has persisted over the previous seven years.As an example of this inequality, Public Health England observed a mortality rate of 84.6 (per 100,000) in Blackpool (the most deprived local authority in England) in 2017, compared to a mortality rate of 37.6 (per 100,000) in Hart (the least deprived local authority in England) for the same period.For the local authorities in both groups, there has been no statistically significant change over the previous seven years, maintaining the inequality gap. Data is available on the Local Alcohol Profiles for England at the following link:https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/local-alcohol-profiles

Mental Illness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of UK citizens experience mental ill health at some point in their lives.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information is not held in the format requested.

Mental Illness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the prevalence of diagnosed mental health conditions in each National Statistics Socio-economic Classification.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We have made no such assessment.

Mental Illness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of adults with mental health conditions who were diagnosed before their 18th birthday.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We have made no such estimate.

Anxiety: Medical Treatments

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment he has made of the effectiveness of (a) mindfulness-based and (b) other NICE recommended interventions in reducing anxiety.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We have made no such assessment.

Department for International Development

Sustainable Development

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU with no deal on his Department’s ability to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 17 in the UK.

Harriett Baldwin: Leaving the EU, with or without a deal, will not affect our commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. The UK’s first Voluntary National Review (VNR) of the Goals will be published on 26 June. The VNR will review UK action in support of Goal 17. It will also outline key challenges and next steps, recognising that while progress is being made, there is more work to do.

Sustainable Development

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the timetable is for the publication of the Government's plan to achieve the sustainable development goals.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK’s first Voluntary National Review (VNR) of the Sustainable Development Goals will be published in the UK on 26 June and presented to the UN High Level Political Forum in mid-July. The VNR will review UK action both domestically and internationally in support of the Goals. It will also outline key challenges and next steps, recognising that while progress is being made, there is more work to do on all 17 Goals.

Pakistan: HIV Infection

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans his Department has to support the international response to the recent HIV outbreak in Pakistan.

Harriett Baldwin: We are closely tracking reports of an outbreak of just over 600 new cases of HIV, 75% of them among children, in a town called Ratto Dero in Sindh province. The UK government invests significantly in the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, which works closely with the provincial government in Sindh. There has been an intensive effort to test the population for HIV to establish the extent of the outbreak. Over 20,000 people have been tested to date. We are in close contact with the Global Fund and are working with them to ascertain whether any further assistance is needed, for example to make treatment available for those who need it and prevent onward transmission.

Sub-Saharan Africa: HIV Infection

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to help reduce gender inequalities in HIV diagnosis in sub-Saharan Africa.

Dr Andrew Murrison: It is not acceptable that young women, particularly in Africa, have the highest number of new HIV infections and deaths from AIDS. That is why the UK government puts the empowerment of girls and women at the heart of everything we do and is an essential component of our fight against AIDS. We are currently the second biggest donor to the Global Fund, which has embraced gender equality as central to accomplishing its mission. We also integrate HIV prevention and treatment into sexual, reproductive health and rights and maternal and child health programmes across much of sub-Saharan Africa. By promoting comprehensive sexuality education (through key programmes such as the Girls Education Challenge) and driving efforts to prevent violence against women and girls, we are also helping to reduce the risk of HIV infection among vulnerable women and girls.

Developing Countries: HIV Infection

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether his Department has plans to review its approach to HIV and AIDS in response to the UN goal to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK is a world leader in efforts to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030, including through our major investment in the Global Fund.Our programmes focus on integrating the HIV response, building on improvements in access to treatment, while seeking to reduce new infections, particularly among adolescent girls, women and other groups still left behind who face stigma and discrimination. DFID has no immediate plans to review this approach, which is based on the evidence of what works.

Marie Stopes International: Expenditure

Sir William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether his Department has allocated funding to Marie Stopes International for advocacy on laws on abortion in (a) Malawi, (b) South Sudan and (c) other countries in the last ten years.

Dr Andrew Murrison: My Department has provided funding to Marie Stopes International through central and bilateral programming in support of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health. This includes a wide range of activities such as health service delivery, outreach, contraceptive supply, policy support and advocacy. As part of this support, the Department allocated funding to Marie Stopes International and its partners through the Preventing Maternal Deaths from Unwanted Pregnancy Programme, from 2011 to 2018 across 20 countries, including South Sudan (until 2015) and Malawi. Our programmes take an integrated approach and the budget does not include figures specifically for advocacy on laws on abortion.

Developing Countries: Abortion

Sir William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 16 May 2019 to Question 252496, which institutions his Department relied on for estimates of illegal abortions before July 2018.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK government has long used a range of data sources and publications to inform our policy on unsafe abortion, as cited in our published position – notably the World Health Organisation and the Guttmacher Institute, whose expertise in this area is longstanding. This was the case prior to July 2018, when our sector results page was published.

Developing Countries: Abortion

Sir William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what opinion surveys his Department has commissioned on the views of (a) UK taxpayers and (b) people who live in the countries which receive UK aid according to his Department's policy on funding abortions overseas.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK Government’s policy on safe abortion takes an evidence-based, public health approach that aims to reduce death and disability caused by unsafe abortions and does not use opinion surveys. DFID has a range of bilateral and multi-country programmes supporting a package of women’s reproductive and maternal health information and services and only supports provision of safe abortion services as allowed by local laws. In countries where abortion is highly restricted, we can help make the consequences of unsafe abortion more widely understood. We do this by supporting the voices of local women themselves, as they work for their own rights and choices.

International Planned Parenthood Federation: Finance

Sir William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding his Department has provided to the International Planned Parenthood Federation in the last five years; and how much funding his Department plans to provide to that organisation in the 2019-20 financial year.

Dr Andrew Murrison: From January 2013 to December 2017 DFID channelled £34.4m of net ODA via the International Planned Parenthood Federation. Comparable figures beyond 2017 are not yet available, estimates for 2018 spending will be available in autumn 2019.

Bangladesh: Rohingya

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to ensure refugees are consulted on the development of the medium-term response plan for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking with the Government of Bangladesh to establish a medium-term development plan for Cox’s Bazar.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK government is committed to supporting the Government of Bangladesh’s generosity in hosting the Rohingya refugees. Although the aim is the voluntary return of the refugees to Myanmar, the current conditions and continued conflict in Rakhine State preclude this. As the crisis moves into a protracted phase, we will remain a leading donor to the humanitarian operation and increase our support to the development needs of affected communities in Cox’s Bazar. This requires working with the UN, World Bank and others to help the Government develop and finance medium-term plans for the district. It also requires continuous consultation with the refugees to make sure that their needs and aspirations are, as far as possible, met. A group of partners, led by BBC Media Action, is helping to facilitate this.

Bangladesh: Rohingya

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment his Department has made of (a) opportunities for self-reliance and (b) access to education and livelihoods for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent steps his Department has taken is taking to ensure adequate access to (a) educational and (b) livelihood opportunities for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Harriett Baldwin: We are in regular dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh, and international and local partners on how to improve the opportunities for Rohingya refugees to lead more fulfilling and meaningful lives, now and in the future. Education and livelihoods are an important part of this. The International Development Secretary discussed the Rohingya crisis with the Bangladesh Government in Dhaka in February, including the need to improve refugees’ access to education, skills and livelihoods. The Minister for Asia and the Pacific held similar discussions with the Government during his visit in April.We are funding UNICEF, both directly and through Education Cannot Wait, to increase the learning opportunities for refugee children and adolescents. We are also assisting centres that provide training in skills and entrepreneurship, particularly for women.

Papua: Internally Displaced People

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding his Department has allocated to programmes to support internally displaced people in West Papua.

Harriett Baldwin: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not have a traditional bilateral aid programme in Indonesia. DFID established the UK Climate Change Unit (UKCCU) in 2011 to work with the Government of Indonesia to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. DFID Indonesia has not allocated any bilateral funds to non-climate related programmes in West Papua.

Developing Countries: Vaccination

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to tackle opposition to the use of vaccination in developing countries.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK believes all children should have access to lifesaving vaccines and is committed to supporting their increased uptake internationally. We deliver this through our strong investment in Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, which will vaccinate an additional 76 million children in 68 of the world’s poorest countries by 2020. We are deeply concerned that opposition to vaccinations and spread of anti-vaccine misinformation could undermine these hard-fought gains that have helped protect the world’s most vulnerable children from vaccine preventable diseases and outbreaks. Gavi shares this concern and works through civil society groups at local levels to address opposition to vaccines. These groups monitor anti-vaccine sentiment at local levels and help counter vaccine misinformation by providing accurate information of their health benefits. This approach helps provide a deeper understanding of the causes of opposition to vaccinations. Gavi also supports health workers with additional training on how to speak to parents to help address any concerns or fears about vaccinations.

Department for Education

Literacy: Children

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he made of the implications for his Department's policies of the recent National Literacy Trust findings on the literacy benefits of children reading both digital and print formats.

Nick Gibb: The Department welcomes the National Literacy Trust’s research on reading in both print and digital forms. The Department encourages children to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information, whatever the format. Research suggests that reading for pleasure is more important for children’s educational development than their parents’ level of education. There is sound evidence that systematic synthetic phonics is a highly effective method of teaching reading to children. Phonics performance is improving: in 2018, there were 163,000 more 6 year olds on track to become fluent readers compared to 2012. This represented 82% of pupils meeting the expected standard in the phonics screening check, compared to just 58% when the check was introduced in 2012. Building on the success of our phonics partnerships and phonics roadshows programmes, in 2018 we launched a £26.3 million English Hubs Programme. Hub schools are taking a leading role in improving the teaching of early reading through systematic synthetic phonics, early language development, and reading for pleasure. We have appointed 34 primary schools across England as English Hubs.

Literacy: Children and Young People

Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on the conclusions in relation to reading in (a) print and (b) digital formats of the report entitled, Children and young people's reading in 2017-18, published in June 2019 by the National Literacy Trust.

Nick Gibb: The Department welcomes the National Literacy Trust’s research on reading in both print and digital forms. The Department encourages children to develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information, whatever the format. Research suggests that reading for pleasure is more important for children’s educational development than their parents’ level of education. There is sound evidence that systematic synthetic phonics is a highly effective method of teaching reading to children. Phonics performance is improving: in 2018, there were 163,000 more 6 year olds on track to become fluent readers compared to 2012. This represented 82% of pupils meeting the expected standard in the phonics screening check, compared to just 58% when the check was introduced in 2012. Building on the success of our phonics partnerships and phonics roadshows programmes, in 2018 we launched a £26.3 million English Hubs Programme. Hub schools are taking a leading role in improving the teaching of early reading through systematic synthetic phonics, early language development, and reading for pleasure. We have appointed 34 primary schools across England as English Hubs.

Schools: Admissions

Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of good school places in England.

Nick Gibb: Delivering good quality school places is a top priority for this Government. The Department has committed £7 billion between 2015 and 2021 to deliver new school places, which is on top of investment in the free schools programme. The Department is on track to create one million places this decade, the largest increase in school capacity in at least two generations. As of March 2019, there are 1.9 million more children in ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ schools compared to 2010. This represents 85% of children compared to just 66% in 2010 - and that is in part down to the Department’s reforms. As of 14 June 2019, there are 446 open free schools, 50 University Technical Colleges and 27 studio schools. These will provide over 290,000 places when at capacity. The Department has approved a further 286 applications (including one UTC) from groups it is now working with to establish schools. In addition, in March 2019, the Department announced that it will run competitions in successful local authority areas to open and run 37 new special and two new alternative provision free schools.

Higher Education: Mental Health

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report by the Higher Education Policy Institute entitled Pressure Vessels: The epidemic of poor mental health among higher education staff, what assessment he has made of the reasons behind the increase in poor mental health among academics and the increasing numbers of university staff being referred to counselling and occupational health services.

Chris Skidmore: Mental health is a priority for this government which is why last week (17 June 2019) my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister announced measures which overhaul the government’s approach to preventing mental illness. These measures include £1 million to the Office of Students for a competition to find innovative new ways to support mental health at universities and colleges. The Department for Education is also working closely with Universities UK on embedding the Step Change programme, which calls on higher education leaders to adopt mental health as a strategic priority and take a whole-institution approach to embed a culture of good mental health practice. The university Mental Health Charter announced in June 2018 will drive up standards in promoting mental health and wellbeing, positive working environments and excellent support for both students and staff. The Independent Review of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers led by Professor Julia Buckingham has recognised issues of wellbeing and the challenges that arise from the use of short and fixed term contracts. Recommendations are currently under review and a revised concordat is expected by the end of June. However, universities are autonomous institutions and it is the responsibility of Vice Chancellors to give due consideration to the way their policies and practises impact on staff. This includes responsible use of performance management, workload models and other metrics to assure both student and staff success.

Schools: Air Pollution

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to support eco-friendly solutions to tackle air pollution in schools.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for Education: Public Expenditure

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the common core tables 2017 to 2018 in the document DfE consolidated annual report and accounts 2017 to 2018, published by his Department in July 2016, what programmes are funded by the budget line entitled, other resource.

Anne Milton: The Resource Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL) total expenditure disclosed as ‘Other Resource’ in the Department for Education Annual Report & Accounts 2017-18 are:Estimate Row 2017-18Activities to Support all FunctionsSchool Infrastructure and Funding of Education (Department)School Infrastructure and Funding of Education (ALB) (Net)Education Standards, Curriculum and Qualifications (Department)Social Care, Mobility and Equalities (Department)Social Care, Mobility and Equalities (ALB) (Net)Standards and Testing AgencyNational College for Teaching and LeadershipEducation and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)Grants to LA Schools via ESFAGrants to Academies via ESFAHigher EducationFurther EducationHigher Education (ALB) (net)Further Education (ALB) (net).

Free Schools: Construction

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many new free schools were built each year since 2016-17; and how many free-schools have been approved for the next five years.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Schools: Admissions

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many new school places created since 2010 are in schools rated (a) outstanding, (b) good, (c) requires improvement and (d) inadequate by Ofsted.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Justice

Legal Aid Scheme: Domestic Abuse

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many legal aid applications for domestic violence have been made in each year since 2010.

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of legal aid applications for civil cases of domestic violence have been accepted in each year since 2010.

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications for legal aid for injuction cases have been made in each year since 2010.

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of applications for legal aid for injunction cases were accepted in each year since 2010.

Paul Maynard: Police recorded domestic abuse crimes have increased by over 60% in the last three years, demonstrating increased victim confidence to report and better police recording of these crimes. Overall, prosecutions and convictions for domestic abuse are both up since 2010 – by 20 per cent and 28 per cent respectively, with 76% of all prosecutions resulting in successful convictions, the highest proportion since 2010. However, the CPS are working closely with the police locally and nationally to ensure appropriate referrals are made by the police and to address any fall in referrals where needed. In November last year, MHCLG awarded £22 million for domestic abuse projects across the country. This is helping to provide over 2,200 new beds in refuges and other safe accommodation, as well as access to education and tailored employment and life skills guidance. MHCLG are also consulting on potential measure for sustainable delivery of support for victims and their children in accommodation-based services for domestic abuse across England. The Consultation ends on 2 August. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/support-for-victims-of-domestic-abuse-in-safe-accommodation The figures below relate to legal aid at the Civil Representation level. Legal aid for these matters is also available by way of initial advice and assistance under the Legal Help scheme. Application and percentage data is not held for Legal Help matters, as the decision on whether to grant funding is devolved to the solicitor in question. Financial YearDomestic Violence ApplicationsGrantedProportion Granted2010-1119,95117,99590%2011-1217,65216,18792%2012-1317,40615,81291%2013-1416,92515,30690%2014-1515,66214,11490%2015-1614,74813,57492%2016-1714,09213,34995%2017-1814,18813,44695%2018-19*10,2009,49993%Financial YearInjunction ApplicationsGrantedProportion Granted2010-1119,95117,99590%2011-1217,64716,18292%2012-1317,39515,80291%2013-1416,92515,30690%2014-1515,66114,11490%2015-1614,74613,57292%2016-1714,09013,34995%2017-1814,18813,44695%2018-1910,2009,49993%*(Apr to Dec 2018) Please note that injunction figures, although being separately reported on here, are included as part of the ‘Domestic Violence’ category volumes displayed in the first table.

Homelessness

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of decisions on intentional homelessness have been challenged in each year since 2012.

Paul Maynard: A full answer cannot be provided as the data requested is not held by HMCTS.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Divorce

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average waiting time was for a response from each HMCTS divorce centre (a) on 17 June 2019, (b) in 2015 and (c) in 2010.

Paul Maynard: The regional divorce units were set up in 2015.The average period of time from receipt to issue of the decree nisi is currently: Midlands 27.6 weeksNorth East 29.7 weeksNorth west 29.1 weeksWales 28.5 weeksSouth east 41 weeksSouth west 26.8 weeks In June 2015 it was:Midlands 24 weeksNorth East 21 weeksNorth West 23.8 weeksWales 22 weeksSouth East 24.7 weeksSouth west 21.4 weeks We have increased the number of sitting days and recruited extra judges and magistrates to meet increased demand in the family courts. In the South East, staff shortages in Bury St Edmunds Divorce Centre led to some delays, and the centre is now fully staffed and performance is improving.Divorce can be a deeply distressing time which is why a new online divorce application was introduced as part of the £1 billion Reform programme. Separating couples can fill in simplified forms, submit documents and pay online - leading to significantly fewer errors and an easier, cheaper application process.

Cremation

Thelma Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the average length of time between death and cremation by region in (a) 2016-17, (b) 2017-18 and (c) 2018-19; and what steps he is taking to reduce that time.

Edward Argar: The information is not held centrally. This is a matter for individual cremation authorities.

Marriage: Humanism

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Government has taken to legally recognise humanist marriages in England and Wales.

Paul Maynard: The Government announced in last year’s Budget that it would to ask the Law Commission to undertake a wider review of marriage ceremonies. We want to make marriage more accessible and meaningful and give couples greater choice in how they can celebrate their commitment. This includes greater flexibility for different faiths and for non-religious belief organisations. We have been finalising the terms of reference for the review and will announce these shortly.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the timeframe is for his Department to bring forward legislative proposals to increase the maximum sentence for causing death by dangerous driving.

Robert Buckland: We will bring forward proposals to increase the maximum penalty for causing death by dangerous driving as soon as the parliamentary timetable allows.

Reoffenders

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 May to Question 246971 on Reoffenders: Community Orders, if he will publish the offences included under the Miscellaneous Crimes Against Society category.

Robert Buckland: The offences included under the Miscellaneous Crimes Against Society category committed by adult offenders who started a community order in the calendar year 2016, in England and Wales, can be found in the attached response table.At present, we do not intend to routinely produce such statistics as we have yet to identify sufficient user need to justify the costs involved.Details of the offence classifications used by the Ministry of Justice can be found at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802050/offence_group_classification2018.xlsxMoJ groups indictable offences based on the counting rules for recorded crime published by the Home Office which can be found at the link below:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/791105/count-notifiable-offences-apr-2019.xlsxThe detail around crime recording general rules can be found at:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/801406/count-general-may-2019.pdf

Prisons: Drugs

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2019 to Question 260706 on Prisons: Drugs, which 20 prisons are included in the post-exposure testing programme.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2019 to Question 260706 on Prisons: Drugs, how many members of prison staff have been tested in the post-exposure testing programme in each of the last 24 months.

Robert Buckland: Her Majesty’s Prison & Probation Service has been investigating and evaluating the risks of second-hand exposure to psychoactive substances to prison staff. A pilot programme was run at Holme House prison in 2018 which involved anonymous pre and post-shift sampling of 15 volunteers. 122 samples were tested, and no metabolites of synthetic cannabinoids were detected. On the advice of toxicologists from Public Health England, HMPPS subsequently embarked on a programme of post-incident testing in 10 prisons on the 1 March 2019. All samples require the consent of the member of staff. As of 7 June 2019, 28 members of staff have been offered testing post-incident, with 17 staff consenting and providing a sample.We are in the process of selecting 10 additional establishments to expand and accelerate the programme. The 10 prisons already included in the programme are HMPs Hewell, Ranby, Dartmoor, Holme House, Channing’s Wood, Low Newton, Durham, The Mount, Wymott and Portland.

Offences Against Children: Compensation

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2019 to Question 260612 on Offences Against Children: Compensation, if he will name the judge in each of the 26 cases.

Edward Argar: The judiciary are statutorily obliged to consider making a compensation order in all appropriate cases and this obligation is outlined in sentencing guidelines which are set by the Sentencing Council. The judiciary must give reasons where no such order is made. However, both the imposition of compensation orders, and decisions as to amount, are at judicial discretion. The separation of powers and judicial independence are key to upholding the rule of law therefore it would be inappropriate for MPs and Ministers (as members of the legislative and executive branches) to seek to influence the judiciary in the exercise of their powers. Therefore, it is not appropriate to provide the names of the judges in relation to each of the 26 cases

Debt Collection

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of regulations on the conduct of bailiffs in protecting children and families from the harm of aggressive debt collection practices.

Paul Maynard: The Ministry of Justice is currently reviewing the implementation of reforms, contained in the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and introduced in 2014, which govern how enforcement agents (formerly known as bailiffs) operate. The overarching aim of the reforms was to provide more protection to people against aggressive enforcement action, whilst still ensuring that debts can be collected effectively. We have held a Call for Evidence to inform our review, which closed in February 2019. We are considering the responses received and plan to respond in the summer.

Prisons: Contracts

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value was of contracts awarded by his Department to third sector organisations for the provisions of services in prisons in each year since 2010.

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value was of contracts awarded by his Department to third sector organisations for the provision of services in the probation system in each year since 2010.

Edward Argar: The information requested could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.

Prisons: Education

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much has been paid from the public purse to Staffline Group Plc for the provision of education services in prisons in each of the last three years.

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, in which prisons Staffline Group Plc provides education services.

Robert Buckland: PeoplePlus, a subsidiary of Staffline Group PLC, were awarded contracts worth the following for providing prison education services over the last three years:Aug 2016 – Jul 2017: £11.246mAug 2017 – Jul 2018: £11.246mAug 2018 – Mar 2019: £7.498m**This period ended when new prison education contracts commenced on 1 April 2019. PeoplePlus are (with effect from 1 April 2019) delivering education services in HMP Bedford; HMP Littlehey; HMP & YOI Norwich; HMP Bure; HMP Wayland; HMP Leicester; HMP Onley; HMP Lincoln; HMP North Sea Camp; HMP Whatton; HMP The Mount; HMP & YOI Chelmsford; HMP Warren Hill; HMP & YOI Hollesley Bay; HMP Highpoint; HMP Nottingham; HMP Ranby; HMP Stocken; HMP Sudbury; HMP & YOI Foston Hall; and HMP Drake Hall.

Public Inquiries: Prosecutions

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take steps to ensure ensure that public inquiries in relation to major incidents do not (a) hinder and (b) delay criminal prosecutions.

Paul Maynard: There is already a power under section 13 of the Inquiries Act 2005 for the minister responsible for an inquiry, by notice to the inquiry chairman, to suspend an inquiry to allow for the determination of any criminal proceedings arising out of matters to which the inquiry relates.

Magistrates' Courts: South Yorkshire

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average number of days taken from court listing to completion in each magistrates’ court in South Yorkshire in each year since 2010 was.

Paul Maynard: The Ministry of Justice has published information on the average length of time taken from first listing to completion, quarterly from June 2010 to December 2018, and can be found in the timeliness-transparency-q4-2018 file: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/790261/Transparency_files.zip Filter LCJB area: South Yorkshire LCJB, data can then be filtered by court type for Barnsley LCJB, Doncaster LCJB and Sheffield LCJB Data for the quarter ending March 2019 will be published in June 2019. We have a world-leading justice system and performance levels are continually kept under close review to ensure changes in demands are met.

Sheffield Crown Court

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average number of days taken from court listing to completion at Sheffield Crown Court in each year since 2010 was.

Paul Maynard: The Ministry of Justice has published information on the average length of time taken from first listing to completion, quarterly from June 2010 to December 2018, and can be found in the timeliness-transparency-q4-2018 file: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/790261/Transparency_files.zip Filter LCJB area: South Yorkshire LCJB, data can then be filtered by court type for Sheffield Crown Court. Data for the quarter ending March 2019 will be published in June 2019. We are working together across the Criminal Justice System to ensure the smooth running of our courts, as well as using new technology and initiatives to reduce delays. We are pleased outstanding cases at the Crown Court have decreased even further, now at the lowest levels since 2000. We have a world-leading justice system and performance levels are continually kept under close review to ensure changes in demands are met

Law: Marriage

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the timetable is for the Government and the Law Commission to agree on the terms of reference for the Law Commission’s full review of the law governing weddings.

Paul Maynard: The Government announced in the Budget that it would invite the Law Commission to review the law on how and where couples may marry in England and Wales. The Government has been finalising the terms of reference with the Law Commission and expects to announce the details shortly.

Prisoners' Release

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of offenders sentenced to custody have served less than half their full sentence term due to early release in each year since 2007.

Robert Buckland: Prisoners sentenced to a standard determinate custodial sentence must be released automatically at the halfway point of their sentence and serve the second half on licence. Those sentenced to at least 12 weeks but less than four years may be released on Home Detention Curfew (HDC) up to 135 days before the halfway point, depending on sentence length. HDC is a robust scheme which allows suitable, risk assessed, prisoners to work towards rehabilitation in the community, while remaining subject to strict monitoring and other conditions. If they breach these, they can be returned to custody. HDC allows reintegration back into the community in a controlled and supervised way, which research suggests may help to reduce the risk of further offending. Between 2007 and 2010, a further scheme operated which also allowed for early release before the halfway point of sentence – the End of Custody Licence (ECL) scheme. This allowed certain adult prisoners to be released 18 days before their normal halfway release point. It was brought to an end in March 2010. Children sentenced to a Detention and Training Order (DTO) serve the first half in custody, and the second half in the community. Most children serving a DTO of 8 months or more can be released one or two months earlier (depending on the DTO length) than the normal mid-point of sentence. The attached table shows the number of offenders released early under the Home Detention Curfew, End of Custody Licence and Detention and Training Order early release schemes in each year since 2007, and the proportion of all prisoners released who were released under each scheme. Prisoners may also be released early before having served half the sentence under the Early Removal Scheme (ERS). Under this scheme offenders liable to removal from the United Kingdom who have served at least a quarter of the sentence may be released before the halfway appoint solely in order to facilitate their deportation. Prisoners may also be released early on compassionate grounds (ERCG) before they have served half the sentence. Relevant data on releases under ERS and ERCG are not collated centrally.



Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 31 KB)

Council Tax: Non-payment

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of people who received a custodial sentence for council tax debt were women in each year since 2010.

Paul Maynard: The number of women and men admitted to prison for ‘Non-Payment: Community charge / Council Tax’ can be viewed in Table A2.12 at the link below: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/796916/receptions-2018.ods

Prisoners: Veterans

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many former armed service personnel who have declared their membership of those services are serving a sentence in each prison in South Wales.

Edward Argar: In October 2018, the Department published Experimental Statistics release estimating the numbers of ex-service personnel in the prison population (next release due October 2019). This new analysis indicated that there were 2,032 prisoners as at 30 June 2018 who had declared as ‘ex-service personnel’ when they were first received into custody between January 2015 and June 2018. Of these, the number serving a prison sentence in all prisons in Wales as at 30 June 2018 were: HMP Cardiff12HMP Parc56HMP Prescoed5HMP Swansea15HMP Usk16HMP Berwyn24 Prisoners who choose to identify as veterans are given access to specialist support, this includes support for issues such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, that may affect them following their service. Additional support can be offered by military service charities working with prisons and rehabilitation services.

Legal Aid Scheme: Discrimination

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure victims of discrimination are able to access the legal representation they require.

Paul Maynard: We have specifically protected legal aid, both for initial advice and representation, subject to the statutory means and merits tests, for civil legal services provided in relation to contravention of the Equality Act 2010. Publicly funded advice continues to be available for Employment Tribunal discrimination claims, and publicly funded advice and representation is available in the Employment Appeal Tribunal, and the civil courts more generally. Our Legal Aid Support Action Plan, published in February, has also committed to improving the access victims of discrimination have to state-funded legal representation. This includes reinstating immediate access to face-to-face legal advice in discrimination cases, reviewing legal aid means testing, and improving the Exceptional Case Funding scheme.

CAFCASS

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many family court advisers were employed by Cafcass in each year from 2010 to date.

Paul Maynard: The number of family court advisers who were employed by Cafcass in each year from 2010 to date: Month and YearNumber of Family Court Advisors March 20101120March 20111116March 20121163March 20131198March 20141226March 20151200March 20161192March 20171146March 20181295March 20191337

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2019 to Question 248641, what the average cost was of obtaining the medical evidence required for an application for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in each of the last two years for which data is available.

Edward Argar: The information requested could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2019 to Question 248641, for how many applications for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme the Government has covered the cost of providing initial medical evidence in each year since 2012.

Edward Argar: The information requested could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Offenders: Rehabilitation

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2019 to Question 262418, what the threshold for the number of participants is in an accredited programme below which his Department does not consider it suitable for impact evaluation.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2019 to Question 262418, if he will publish the research referred to in that Answer.

Robert Buckland: The department seeks to deliver impact evaluations for all accredited programmes. However, the feasibility of an impact evaluation needs to be reviewed first in an evaluability study. The factors that are reviewed to determine whether an impact evaluation is possible include: The expected reduction in reoffending rate for the specific offender cohort, and the appropriate number of years over which we expect reductions in reoffending to occur;The number of programme completers required to detect this reduction (calculated using statistical power analysis); andThe quality of the data and information available. Evaluability studies ensure that the best possible evaluation approach is identified. Therefore, it is not possible to provide a single threshold for the number of participants in an accredited programme below which it would not have an impact evaluation carried out, as it will differ by programme. The department is committed to publishing all research carried out in line with the Government Social Research guidelines.

Employment Tribunals Service

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he has taken to reduce the average time taken to conclude a claim before an employment tribunal.

Paul Maynard: HM Courts & Tribunals Service has been working with the tribunal’s judiciary to appoint additional judges to increase the capacity and performance of the tribunal. 58 (51.5 full time equivalent) salaried employment judges took up positions from April 2019.

Legal Aid Scheme: Coroners

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications were granted or part granted on behalf of bereaved families for Exceptional Case Funding for legal representation under the public interest test at inquests in 2017/18.

Paul Maynard: This information could only be retrieved at disproportionate cost.

Department for International Trade

Coal Fired Power Stations: Overseas Investment

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how much money UK Export Finance has invested in coal-fired power stations since 2017.

Graham Stuart: UK Export Finance has not provided support for a coal-fired power station since 2002.

Military Aircraft: Qatar

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how much has UK Export Finance invested in Qatar for the purchasing of military aircraft.

Graham Stuart: UK Export Finance (UKEF) has no investments in Qatar. In 2018, UKEF provided a package of loans, guarantees and insurance with a value of around £4.2 billion (not taking into account amounts reinsured by other ECAs) in respect of the sale of 24 Typhoon and 9 Hawk aircraft and associated goods and services by UK companies BAE Systems and MBDA UK to the State of Qatar. UKEF has published details of its support for these contracts in its Annual Report and Accounts 2018-19 (pages 55-56) which has been presented to Parliament and can be found on UKEF’s website. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-export-finance-annual-report-and-accounts-2018-to-2019 This package is the only instance of UKEF support for the sale of military aircraft to Qatar.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Housing Infrastructure Fund

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much Housing Infrastructure Fund funding has been allocated by Homes England to Forward Fund projects, by region.

Kit Malthouse: We have announced nine successful Forward Funding projects so far, totalling over £1.3 billion of grant funding for infrastructure that will unlock up to 77,000 homes across the country. The breakdown of this announced funding is as follows: £540.7 million for projects in Greater London, £313 million for projects the South East, £227 million for a project in the East of England, £123.7 million for projects in the North West and £102.6 million for projects in the South West. These schemes will provide a range of infrastructure to support local communities including road improvements, health facilities and new schools. Further successful funded bids will be announced over the coming months.

Housing

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of the homes being unlocked by the Housing Infrastructure Fund are expected to be affordable homes, and what proportion of those affordable homes are expected to be social rented homes.

Kit Malthouse: This Government is committed to boosting housing supply and to build more affordable homes, including for social rent. Housing Infrastructure Fund grant funding will support local authorities to develop ambitious plans to meet their area’s affordable housing need. These will be agreed through the usual planning process.

Members: Correspondence

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich of 2 May 2019 on new build homes.

Kit Malthouse: I replied to the Hon Member's letter on 6 June 2019 and subsequent to this an electronic copy was emailed to the Hon Member on 18 June 2019.

High Rise Flats: Fire Extinguishers

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost of retrofitting sprinklers to all high-rise buildings.

Kit Malthouse: Sprinkler systems are already required through building regulations for high rise buildings over 30 metres. Our view remains that the retrofitting of sprinklers will not always be the most effective fire safety measure in existing residential buildings, but it should be for building owners to assess the risks based on the building design and take action, in consultation with residents, if necessary. I am aware that a number of local authorities are either taking, or considering taking, action on the retrofitting of sprinklers. Our proposals for a safety case review regime for existing buildings should also help owners and residents determine the most appropriate fire safety measures going forward. We are also focused on the position for new build, where it is easier to incorporate sprinkler systems from the outset. Our call for evidence on the technical review of fire safety guidance closed on 18 March, and that included questions on sprinkler provision, where the responses are being analysed.

Right to Buy Scheme: Midlands

Craig Tracey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the response of Homes England to freedom of information request reference RFI2673, whether his Department plans to reopen the ballot for the Voluntary Right to Buy Midlands Pilot for Housing Association tenants as a result of the low take-up in that ballot.

Kit Malthouse: Over 9,000 people entered the ballot for the Midlands pilot of the Voluntary Right to Buy, and 6,000 of these received Unique Reference Numbers to move forward with their purchase. The Government is closely monitoring the progress of the pilot, the number of Unique Reference Numbers that are resulting in applications to buy, and the spending of the budget. There are no plans to run a second ballot – if this position changes, the Government will make an announcement.

Mobile Homes: Reviews

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress the Government has made in implementing the proposals outlined in the Government response to the Review of park homes legislation: call for evidence part two.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Significant progress has been made on the implementation of the proposals set out in the Government’s response to the review.A working group has been set up to consider how information about rights and responsibilities can be improved and shared more widely.The Government intends to shortly publish a consultation on introducing a fit and proper person test for park home site licence holders and managers.Research will be commissioned later this year to assess the likely impacts of a change to the rate of commission paid on the sale of a mobile home. In scoping research, careful consideration will be given to the judicial review decision of the Welsh Government’s earlier proposal to reduce the rate of commission.The proposals which require primary and secondary legislation will depend on parliamentary time being available.

Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960: Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on the implications of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 for Wales.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 (the 1960 Act) sets out the local authority site licensing regime for caravan sites in England, Wales and Scotland. Caravan site licensing under the 1960 Act is a devolved matter.We made significant changes to the 1960 Act, in relation to England only, through the Mobile Homes Act 2013. We carried out a review of park homes legislation (England only) in 2017 and published the Government’s response on 22 October 2018.The Government response is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/749771/Park_homes_Review_Government_response.pdf.

Ministry of Defence

Explosives: Waste Disposal

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to her Department's archived document entitled British Isles Explosive Dumping Grounds, what monitoring her Department undertakes of explosives dumped at the following areas and positions (a) Off the Continental Shelf 48 20 00 N 13 40 00 W, (b) East of Aberdeen 57 09 00 N 01 58 30 W, (c) Loch Linnhe 56 30 00 N 05 37 00 W, (d) Inner Sound 57 19 00 N 05 51 00 W (e) Isle of May, Firth of Forth 56 10 45 N 02 30 15 W, (f) Hurd Deep 49 30 00 N 03 34 00 W ,(g) St Catherines Deep 50 34 00 N 01 12 00 W, (h) East of Orford Ness 52 07 00 N 01 55 00 E, (i) East Swin (Kings Channel) 51 47 30 N 01 30 00 E, (j) NW of Alderney 49 50 00 N 02 18 00 W, (k) NW of Alderney 49 47 00N 02 17 00 W, (l) SSW Guernsey 49 18 00 N 02 42 00 W, (m) Whitesand Bay (Plymouth) 50 18 45 N 04 16 00 W, (n) Milford Haven 51 34 30 N 05 01 00 W, (o) Milford Haven 51 38 00 N 05 20 00W, (p) Milford Haven 51 43 30 N 05 33 45 W, (q) Sound of Mull 56 30 00 N 05 37 00 W and (r) Isle of May (Firth of Forth) 56 11 24 N 02 29 00 W.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to her Department's archived document entitled British Isles Explosive Dumping Grounds, what monitoring her Department undertakes of chemical weapons dumped on the following dates and at the following areas and positions (a) 02.07.45, Lat 58 00.9 N, Lon 11 00.0 W, Empire Fal, 2000M, (b) 11.09.45, Lat 55 30.00 N, Lon 11 00.00 W, Empire Simba, 2500M, (c) 01.10.45, Lat 55 30.00 N, Lon 11 00.00 W, Empire Cormorant, 2500M, (d) 30.10.45, Lat 55 30.00 N, Lon 11 00.00 W, Wairuna, 2500M, (e) 30.12.45, Lat 55 30.00 N, Lon 11 00.00 W, Botlea, 2500M, (f) 25.08.46, Lat 47 57.00 N, Lon 08 33.24 W, Empire Peacock, 700-800M, (g) 03.09.46, Lat 48 03.00 N, Lon 08 09.00 W, Empire Nutfield, 500M, (h) 01.10.46, Lat 47 54.00 N, Lon 08 21.00 W, Kindersley, 1000M, (i) 02.11.46, Lat 59 00.00 N, Lon 07 40.00 W, Empire Woodlark, 800M, (j) 11.11.46, Lat 48 00.00 N, Lon 08 21.00 W, Lanark, 800-900M, (k) 05.02.47, Lat 47 40.00 N, Dora Oldendorf, 3500-4000M, (l) 27.07.47, Lat 47 55.00 N, Lon 08 17.00 W, Empire Lark, 750-800M, (m) 09.08.47, Lat 56 22.00 N, Lon 09 27.00 W, Leighton, 1300M, (n) 08.09.47, Lat 47 47.30 N, Lon 08 21.00 W, Thorpe Bay, 1500M, (o) 03.11.47, Lat 47 36.00 N, Lon 09 31.00 W, Margo, 4100M, (p) 01.03.48, Lat 47 55.00 N, Lon 08 58.00 W, Harm Freitzen, 2500M, (q) 22.08.48, Lat 47 16.30 N, Lon 09 24.00 W, Empire Success, 4200M, (r) 22.09.48, Lat 47 23.00 N, Lon 09 24.00 W, Miervaldis, 4000M, (s) 20.06.49, Lat 47 52.00 N, Lon 08 51.00 W, Empire Connyngham, 2000M, (t) 27.07.55, Lat 56 30.00 N, Lon 12 00.00 W, Empire Claire, 2500M, (u) 30.05.56, Lat 56 30.00 N, Lon 12 00.00 W, Vogtland, 2500M, (v) 23.07.56, Lat 56 31.00 N, Lon 12 05.00 W, Krotka, 2500M, (w) ??.06.56, Lat 56 00 N, Lon 10 00 W, UNKNOWN, 2000M and (x) ??.06-09.56, Lat 56 00 N, UNKNOWN, 2000M.

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether her Department monitors radiation levels around the radioactive waste disposal site at Hurd Deep.

Stuart Andrew: The Ministry of Defence conducts no routine monitoring of these sea-dumping sites.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate she has made of the number of cross-border rocket strikes from Yemen in 2019.

Mark Lancaster: Whilst we judge that the level of cross-border activity is declining, given the nature of rocket attacks, which are of varying calibres, it is not possible to provide any reliable estimate.

Saudi Arabia: Terrorism

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate she has made of the number of casualties as a result of strikes on Saudi Arabia’s Abha airport on 12 June 2019.

Mark Lancaster: The media have reported there being 26 casualties as a result of strikes on Saudi Arabia's Abha airport on 12 June 2019, and we have no reason to dispute this figure.

Aviation: Wind Power

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what funding her Department has allocated to mitigating the effect of aviation radar on the development of future offshore wind sites.

Stuart Andrew: The level of funding the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has allocated for mitigating the detrimental effect of offshore wind sites on our air defence radars cannot be separately identified from wider funding that is used to operate and undertake trials with these radars.We will continue our work to reduce the effect of offshore wind sites on our radars through safeguarding activity and our existing radar support contracts. We will also continue to conduct flight trials to assess the effectiveness of current and proposed mitigations.The MOD remains committed to working closely with industry on mitigating against the effects of the expanding offshore windfarm developments on our air defence and air surveillance capabilities and requirements.

World War I: Anniversaries

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has to commemorate the scuttling of the German Fleet at Scapa Flow in June 1919.

Mark Lancaster: The Royal Navy provided support to the Orkney Islands Council 'Scapa 100' commemorative events on 21 June 2019. The commemorations remembered the fifteen German lives lost as a result of the scuttling of the German High Seas Fleet on 21 June 1919.Ceremonial dives were conducted by Royal Navy and German Navy divers to place wreaths on SMS DRESDEN. Royal Navy and German Navy representatives attended a commemorative service at the Royal Naval Cemetery in Lyness where the Royal Marines Band Service, together with the German Navy Band, provided the music.

Estonia: Air Force

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times RAF aircraft have been scrambled as part of Operation Azotize.

Mark Lancaster: For the 2019 Operation AZOTIZE deployment to undertake Baltic Air Policing in Estonia, the RAF Typhoon detachment have launched Quick Reaction Alert on nine separate days.

Department for Work and Pensions

Pension Credit

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate she has made of the number of additional claims that will be made for pension credit following the limiting of free TV licences to people aged over 75 claiming that benefit.

Guy Opperman: Holding answer received on 17 June 2019



The BBC made its announcement about future eligibility of free TV licences on Monday 10 June. It is too early for an assessment of the potential impact on additional Pension Credit claims to be made. Official statistics on the take-up of income related benefits, including pension credit at general Great Britain level can be found in the ‘Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up in 2016 to 2017’ publication. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2016-to-2017The Government is committed to ensuring that older people receive the support they are entitled to and the DWP targets activity on engaging with people who may be eligible to benefits at pivotal stages, such as when they claim State Pension or report a change in their circumstances. The DWP uses a wide range of channels to communicate information about benefits to potential customers; including information on https://gov.uk/ , in leaflets and by telephone. DWP staff in Pension Centres and Jobcentres including visiting officers are able to provide help and advice about entitlement to benefits, as are staff in Local Authorities who administer Housing Benefit.Potential customers can use the Pension Credit https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator to check if they are likely to be eligible and get an estimate of what they may receive. People wishing to claim Pension Credit can do so by calling 0800 99 1234.One of the best ways to reach eligible customers is through trusted stakeholder working in the community and we have developed the Pension Credit toolkit, as an on-line tool for agencies and welfare rights organisations to use in order to encourage Pension Credit take-up. It can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkitThe toolkit contains resources for anyone working with pensioners and includes guides to Pension Credit. It also contains publicity material and guidance designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit and help organisations support someone applying for Pension Credit as well as ideas for encouraging take-up. The toolkit also provides links to information about disability and carers benefits.Most recently we have provided to relevant organisations a fact sheet about Pension Credit and the recent changes for mixed age couples to ensure that accurate information is available in the places where people are most likely to seek information.

Universal Credit: Telephone Services

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether there is a freephone number that universal credit claimants can use when attempting to make phone contact with her Department from abroad.

Will Quince: You can dial all of the 0800 numbers from abroad using the 0044 prefix. If a claimant does find themselves needing to dial an 0800 number from abroad, then they may incur charges at the standard international rate. This cost will vary depending on where they are calling from.

Unemployment: Nottinghamshire

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of youth employment in Nottinghamshire since 2010.

Alok Sharma: There were 64,800 people aged 16-24 in employment across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire in 2010, and 71,000 in 2018.The number of young people claiming unemployment-related benefits across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Local Authorities has fallen by 65.8% in the last six years and stands at 3,696 as at February 2019.And, the overall level of employment across the East Midlands is now 2.343 million, an increase of just under a quarter of a million since 2010.Across the UK, around 6.0 million (86.4%) 16-24 year olds are in full-time education (FTE) or work.

Television: Licensing

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of providing free television licences to people over the age of 75 for qualifying residents in Norwich South constituency in (a) 2017-18 and (b) 2018-19.

Guy Opperman: Holding answer received on 24 June 2019



In the 2015 funding settlement, the Government agreed with the BBC that responsibility for the concession will transfer to the BBC in June 2020.The government and the BBC agreed this is a fair deal for the BBC - in return we closed the iPlayer loophole and committed to increase the licence fee in line with inflation. And to help with financial planning, we agreed to provide phased transitional funding over 2 years to gradually introduce the cost to the BBC.This reform was subject to public discussion and debated extensively during the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017 through Parliament.On 10 June 2019, the BBC announced that the current scheme will end. From 1 June 2020, a free TV licence will only be available to a household with someone aged over 75 who receives Pension Credit.The table below provides estimates of the costs for 2017/18 of providing free TV licences to people aged 75 years and over in the geographical areas requested, in nominal prices. The figures for 2018/19 will be available in September.  Expenditure (£m) (Nominal) 2017-18Norwich South constituency£0.96

Television: Licensing

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of providing free television licences to people over the age of 75 for qualifying residents in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency and (b) Staffordshire local authority area in (i) 2017-18 and (ii) 2018-19.

Guy Opperman: Holding answer received on 24 June 2019



In the 2015 funding settlement, the Government agreed with the BBC that responsibility for the concession will transfer to the BBC in June 2020.The government and the BBC agreed this is a fair deal for the BBC - in return we closed the iPlayer loophole and committed to increase the licence fee in line with inflation. And to help with financial planning, we agreed to provide phased transitional funding over 2 years to gradually introduce the cost to the BBC.This reform was subject to public discussion and debated extensively during the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017 through Parliament.On 10 June 2019, the BBC announced that the current scheme will end. From 1 June 2020, a free TV licence will only be available to a household with someone aged over 75 who receives Pension Credit.The table below provides estimates of the costs for 2017/18 of providing free TV licences to people aged 75 and over in the geographical areas requested, in nominal prices. The figures for 2018/19 will be available in September. Expenditure (£m) (Nominal) 2017-18Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency£0.98Staffordshire local authority area£9.66

Television: Licensing

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of providing free television licences to people over the age of 75 for qualifying residents in (a) the Motherwell and Wishaw constituency and (b) North Lanarkshire local authority area in (i) 2017-18 and (ii) 2018-19.

Guy Opperman: Holding answer received on 24 June 2019



In the 2015 funding settlement, the Government agreed with the BBC that responsibility for the concession will transfer to the BBC in June 2020.The government and the BBC agreed this is a fair deal for the BBC - in return we closed the iPlayer loophole and committed to increase the licence fee in line with inflation. And to help with financial planning, we agreed to provide phased transitional funding over 2 years to gradually introduce the cost to the BBC.This reform was subject to public discussion and debated extensively during the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017 through Parliament.On 10 June 2019, the BBC announced that the current scheme will end. From 1 June 2020, a free TV licence will only be available to a household with someone aged over 75 who receives Pension Credit.The table below provides estimates of the costs for 2017/18 of providing free TV licences to people aged 75 and over in the geographical areas requested, in nominal prices. The figures for 2018/19 will be available in September. Expenditure (£m) (Nominal) 2017-18(a) Motherwell and Wishaw constituency£0.85(b) North Lanarkshire local authority area£2.95

Pension Credit

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on promoting pension credit to people affected by the BBC's decision to end the provision of free TV licences to people aged over 75 years.

Guy Opperman: The policy for the TV licence concession for those aged 75 and over is currently the responsibility of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and will pass to the BBC in June 2020.DWP officials are in discussion with DCMS officials regarding issues resulting from the BBC’s decision to end from June 2020 the free TV licence concession to those people aged 75 or over who are not receiving Pension Credit. The BBC has undertaken to write to all those who may be affected.The Government remains committed to ensuring that older people receive the support they are entitled to using a wide range of channels to communicate information about benefits to potential customers; including information in leaflets and on https://gov.uk/. Potential customers can use the Pension Credit https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator to check if they are likely to be eligible and get an estimate of what they may receive. People wishing to claim Pension Credit can do so by calling 0800 99 1234.

Television: Licensing

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure people over the age of 75 are supported financially to afford the TV licence fee.

Guy Opperman: The policy for the TV licence concession for those aged 75 and over is currently the responsibility of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and will pass to the BBC in June 2020.We are forecast to spend over £120 billion on benefits for pensioners in 2019-20, this includes over £99 billion of expenditure on the State Pension.We are committed to the Triple Lock for the remainder of this Parliament, guaranteeing that up to the full amounts of the basic and new State Pensions will rise by the highest of average earnings growth, price inflation, or 2.5% and in 2019/20 the increase was 2.6%.The full rate of the basic State Pension will be worth over £1,600 more in 2019/20 than in 2010 in cash terms - £675 more than if it had been increased only in line with earnings.Pension Credit and Housing Benefit for pensioners provide support for poorer pensioners. From April 2019, the Standard Minimum Guarantee in Pension Credit has also been increased by earnings. This will be the equivalent of over £1,800 per year higher in cash terms for single people and over £2,700 per year higher in cash terms for couples than it was in 2010.

Department for Work and Pensions: Correspondence

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pieces of unstructured white mail have been directed to the Derby contact centre to deal with since the creation of the team established to retrieve all such correspondence; and how many items of that mail are still awaiting redirection to the correct department in that centre.

Will Quince: Unstructured White Mail is post that is received but does not have a prescribed structure, such as handwritten letters or non DWP forms. There is no centre to deal specifically with unstructured white mail. There is, however, a team in Derby Contact Centre which receives mail that cannot be attributed to a specific customer or benefit stream and their role is to identify the customer details and benefit stream so that the mail can then be scanned into the relevant systems. The Department does not keep records of volume.

Television: Licensing

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of providing free TV licences to people over the age of 75 for qualifying residents in (a) Cardiff Central constituency and (b) Cardiff local authority area in (i) 2017-18 and (ii) 2018-19.

Guy Opperman: In the 2015 funding settlement, the Government agreed with the BBC that responsibility for the concession will transfer to the BBC in June 2020.The government and the BBC agreed this is a fair deal for the BBC - in return we closed the iPlayer loophole and committed to increase the licence fee in line with inflation. And to help with financial planning, we agreed to provide phased transitional funding over 2 years to gradually introduce the cost to the BBC.This reform was subject to public discussion and debated extensively during the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017 through Parliament.On 10 June 2019, the BBC announced that the current scheme will end. From 1 June 2020, a free TV licence will only be available to a household with someone aged over 75 who receives Pension Credit.The table below provides estimates of the costs for 2017/18 of providing free TV licences to people aged 75 and over in the geographical areas requested, in nominal prices. The figures for 2018/19 will be available in September. Expenditure (£m) (Nominal) 2017-18(a) Cardiff Central constituency£0.57(b) Cardiff local authority area£2.88

Personal Independence Payment

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of personal independence payment for additional costs that claimants have as a result of their disabilities or health conditions.

Justin Tomlinson: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is intended to act as a contribution towards the extra costs that arise as a result of a long-term health condition or disability and entitlement is assessed on the basis of the needs arising from a health condition or disability, rather than the health condition or disability itself.At the core of PIP’s design is the principle that awards of the benefit should be made according to a claimant’s overall level of need. The scope of the criteria does not include a direct assessment of an individual’s extra costs.PIP is uprated annually to maintain its value.

Universal Credit

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants of universal credit are subject to deductions as a result of a fixed penalty notice for an environmental offence; and if he will publish the number of offences committed under each classification.

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants of universal credit have had deductions attached to their claim for fixed penalty notices for environmental offences since 2013.

Alok Sharma: Information surrounding the volume of Universal Credit claims with a deduction for a fixed penalty notice specifically for an environmental offence is not held by the Department.However, between November 2018 and February 2019, 11,000 claims had at least one Universal Credit payment with a deduction for fines. This equates to 1% of all claims with at least one Universal Credit payment with a deduction during this period. Notes Figures rounded to nearest 1000.Deductions include advance repayments, third party deductions and all other deductions, but exclude sanctions and fraud penalties.Data on the breakdown of third party deductions was not collated on the UCFS systems prior to November 2018.Figures are for Universal Credit full service

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much money has been collected through the (a) four and (b) 20 per cent charge under the Child Maintenance Service’s Collect and Pay system in each quarter of the last three years.

Will Quince: ‘PP Collection Charges’ are Paying Parent Collection Charges. They are set at a rate of 20%, which is added to the Child Maintenance a Receiving Parent is due to be paid, and collected once a payment is received from the Paying Parent. ‘RP Collection Charges are Receiving Parent Collection Charges. They are set at a rate of 4%, which is deducted from the amount of money paid by a Paying Parent before CMG send the payment onto the Receiving Parent. These are the 3 most recent years we are able to report on. The 2018/19 CMS Annual Report and Accounts haven’t been audited yet so we are unable to include these figures.   2017-18  Q1Q2Q3Q4TotalPP Collection Charge20%3,442,4993,950,7904,354,3065,130,11716,877,712RP Collection Charge4%662,253758,110831,407988,7633,240,532 2016-17  Q1Q2Q3Q4TotalPP Collection Charge20%2,139,7082,433,7482,756,5923,163,72510,493,773RP Collection Charge4%414,140471,370532,039608,1692,025,718 2015-16  Q1Q2Q3Q4TotalPP Collection Charge20%1,020,0531,245,4331,528,7161,779,0625,573,264RP Collection Charge4%200,423243,329296,804345,7971,086,353

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases administered by the Child Maintenance Service were on (a) Direct Pay and (b) Collect and Pay in each quarter of the last three years.

Will Quince: The information requested is published in Table 4 (Child Maintenance Arrangements for Paying Parents) of the quarterly Child Maintenance Service statistics, which are available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-august-2013-to-december-2018-experimentalThe latest published statistics include data to December 2018.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the total amount of uncollected child maintenance payments was under the Child Maintenance Service in each quarter of the last three years.

Will Quince: The information requested is published in Table 9 (How much child maintenance the Child Maintenance Service has arranged) of the quarterly Child Maintenance Service statistics, which are available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-august-2013-to-december-2018-experimentalThe latest published statistics include data to December 2018. Table 9 gives the cumulative total, at the end of each quarter, of maintenance arranged through the Child Maintenance Service that had not been paid, and now needs to be collected through the Collect & Pay service.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many parents under the Child Maintenance Service were paying child maintenance using a Deduction from Earnings order in each quarter of the last three years.

Will Quince: The below table gives the number of Paying Parents on the Child Maintenance Service, who, at the end of each quarter, were using the Collect & Pay service with a Deduction from Earnings Order. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. These figures count all Paying Parents using a Deduction from Earnings Order, regardless of whether any maintenance had been paid in that quarter. The figures do not include Deduction from Earnings Requests. Quarter EndingDEOs in placeMar-1614,800Jun-1616,900Sep-1618,800Dec-1620,700Mar-1721,700Jun-1723,900Sep-1726,200Dec-1730,200Mar-1836,000Jun-1840,800Sep-1843,300Dec-1845,100 Statistics including data to March 2019 will be published on 26th June.

Television: Licensing

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of providing free TV licences to people over the age of 75 for qualifying residents in (a) Easington constituency and (b) County Durham local authority area in (i) 2017-18 and (ii) 2018-19.

Guy Opperman: In the 2015 funding settlement, the Government agreed with the BBC that responsibility for the concession will transfer to the BBC in June 2020.The government and the BBC agreed this is a fair deal for the BBC - in return we closed the iPlayer loophole and committed to increase the licence fee in line with inflation. And to help with financial planning, we agreed to provide phased transitional funding over 2 years to gradually introduce the cost to the BBC.This reform was subject to public discussion and debated extensively during the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017 through Parliament.On 10 June 2019, the BBC announced that the current scheme will end. From 1 June 2020, a free TV licence will only be available to a household with someone aged over 75 who receives Pension Credit.The table below provides estimates of the costs for 2017/18 of providing free TV licences to people aged 75 and over in the geographical areas requested, in nominal prices. The figures for 2018/19 will be available in September. Expenditure (£m) (Nominal) 2017-18(a) Easington constituency£0.86(b) County Durham local authority area£5.52

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government is taking to support women who have needed to stay in the workforce for longer because of changes to the state pension age.

Guy Opperman: The number of older women in employment is at a record high. There are now 4.9 million women aged 50 and over in the workforce compared to 4.2 million five years ago.We will spend £55 billion [£55.4bn] this year (2019/20) on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions. This is around 2.5% of GDP, and over 6% of government spending, and as a share of GDP, the UK’s public spending is second highest in the G7, bar Germany [OECD 2015 data].To support women to remain and return to the labour market, the Government has removed the Default Retirement Age meaning most people can choose when to retire, and extended the right to request flexible working to all employees with 26 weeks’ continuous service with their employer.We have appointed a Business Champion for Older Workers to engage and influence employers both strategically and in terms of practical advice.In February 2017, the UK Government published “Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach” to set out the role employers, individuals and Government can play in supporting fuller working lives. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/587654/fuller-working-lives-a-partnership-approach.pdfThrough the National Retraining Partnership, a strategic partnership between Government, the Confederation of British Industry and the Trades Union Congress, Government is developing the National Retraining Scheme. The National Retraining Scheme will help prepare adults for the future changes to the economy, including those brought about by automation, and help them retrain into better jobs.And in February this year, DWP launched an online web page which brings together money, job and health elements of the mid-life MOT. https://www.yourpension.gov.uk/mid-life-mot/To support employers, Business in The Community has also created MOT guides that support businesses. https://age.bitc.org.uk/tools-impact-stories/toolkits

Universal Credit

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to prevent loansharks applying on behalf of an individual for a universal credit advance payment which is then issued as a loan to the individual.

Alok Sharma: The Department takes any suspicious or fraudulent activity very seriously, especially when it has the potential to impact our vulnerable claimants. We investigate any allegations of fraudulent activity quickly and look to establish the facts, communicating quickly with our staff and colleagues to ensure that awareness is raised. We also continuously work to improve our services and create more robust processes to help our claimants interact with us in an easier, yet secure way which protects the most vulnerable. We cannot provide details about current investigations, but we investigate promptly and will refer to the relevant authorities to seek prosecution where appropriate.

Pensions

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will publish a Pensions Bill before the summer recess.

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she bring forward legislative proposals before the summer recess to introduce collective defined contribution pension schemes.

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 23 May 2019 to Question 256341, what the timescale is for bringing forward legislation to facilitate Collective Defined Contribution schemes.

Guy Opperman: This Government is committed to legislation to facilitate collective defined contribution schemes. The Government has recently published responses to a series of consultations, and have engaged extensively with key stakeholders and the Pensions Regulator.In these we have committed to strengthen the Pensions Regulator’s powers to both enforce pensions legislation and to punish those who have acted recklessly or failed to comply with their obligations. We have committed to facilitate industry to make pensions dashboards a reality. We are also compelling pension schemes to make consumers data available to them and to facilitate collective defined contribution schemes.The Government will bring forward legislation to introduce these measures as soon as parliamentary time permits.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Greyhound Racing: Animal Welfare

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural affairs, what steps he is taking to improve welfare standards in greyhound racing.

David Rutley: The Government takes the welfare of all racing animals very seriously. We are working closely with the main racing greyhound industry regulatory body, the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) to ensure it delivers on the commitments it made to the Government, following the Government’s Post Implementation Review of the Welfare of Racing Greyhounds Regulations 2010. This includes the annual publication of injury and retirement data to improve transparency in the sport. The second set of annual figures were published on 12 June 2019.https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/gbgb-prod-assets/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/12085443/Final-2018-Stats.pdf The annual publication of the injury and retirement data was accompanied by an update on the progress made by the GBGB against their ‘Greyhound Commitment’. The Commitment sets out an eight point manifesto on how the GBGB is aiming to improve the welfare of racing greyhounds, and includes a commitment to ensure more greyhounds are successfully rehomed at the end of their racing lives. The GBGB have also delivered an independent welfare standard for trainers’ kennels and are also developing a UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service) accredited trainers’ licensing scheme for GBGB trainers. The Government is also considering whether further regulatory changes are required to protect the welfare of racing greyhounds used by professional trainers not running greyhounds on GBGB tracks. To help ensure more funding for greyhound welfare, on 10 January 2019, the Government announced a new funding commitment from bookmakers worth an estimated additional £3 million this year to ensure the welfare of greyhounds is protected and improved. We expect thousands of racing greyhounds are to be better cared for as a result of this new deal. The commitment is set to increase the total amount of funding from bookmakers to the British Greyhound Racing Fund to an estimated £10 million this year.

Greyhounds: Exports

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of greyhounds exported from the UK to Ireland in (a) 2018 and (b) 2019.

David Rutley: The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) does not record information on the specific breed of any dog exported from the UK. However, the total numbers of dogs exported using Export Health Certificates to the Republic of Ireland for the years 2018 and 2019 is as follows: 2018 - 52019 - 15 Please note that APHA does not record information relating to the number of pets travelling from Great Britain with a passport under the Pet Travel Scheme.

Veterinary Services: Fees and Charges

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a maximum, standardised prescription charge for veterinary surgeries.

David Rutley: The Government has no plans to introduce any price regulation in the veterinary industry, including charges for prescriptions. The prices of veterinary services are driven by market forces and vary according to the animal sector involved, the region of the UK and the costs incurred by individual veterinary practices. The fees charged are a private matter between the client and the practice.

Veterinary Services: Fees and Charges

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much was raised by veterinary surgeries in prescription charges in each of the last five years.

David Rutley: The Government does not collect data on the revenue generated by veterinary practices from prescription charges.

Forests

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 18 June 2019 to Question 264330, when his Department plans to publish an update on the afforestation programmes that are being undertaken to achieve the Government’s commitment to be net zero in emissions by 2050.

David Rutley: Our English Tree Strategy will provide further details of our afforestation programme in light of the Government’s commitment to net zero emissions by 2050. The consultation for the English Tree Strategy will be launched later this year. Our recently reappointed Tree Champion is leading our engagement with forestry, environmental and other stakeholders, to inform our development of the Strategy.

Clothing: Waste

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the Government is making on implementing the amendments to the Waste Framework Directive which requires separate collection of clothing waste from households and increased re-use of textiles by 2025.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Latest information from the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) indicates that 90 local authorities in England offer households a kerbside collection of textiles. Many more provide collection points at household waste recycling centres or at bring bank sites. These bring sites provide an important service where kerbside collections are not available or may not be practical. Charity shop outlets also play an important role in acting as collection points for textiles from members of the public. We want to increase the amount of textiles that are diverted from landfill and put into recycling or reuse, and will bring forward proposals as necessary to ensure separate collection of textiles by 2025. More widely, the Government’s Resources and Waste Strategy published in December 2018 sets out our plans to prevent textile waste and encourage greater circularity including reuse. These include: Reviewing and consulting on Extended Producer Responsibility for textiles and four other priority waste streams;Developing regulatory measures for product standards that improve the durability, repairability, and recyclability of products such as clothing;Improving consumer information and supporting a shift in the market;Working with brands, manufacturers, charities and others through the Sustainable Clothing Action Plan to reduce the environmental footprint of clothing and encourage consumers to donate and reuse clothing. This month, we have also announced a multimillion pound grant scheme to support the development of textile recycling facilities in the UK. Further information on this is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/fund-opens-to-reduce-waste-from-plastic-packaging-and-textiles and applications for funding can be made through WRAP: http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/resource-action-fund.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Environmental Land Management scheme pilots have been identified and agreed;  what the names are of those pilots; how many of those pilots are (a) underway and (b) pending; and how many applications were rejected.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Environmental Land Management schemes (ELM) are scheduled to be rolled out from late 2024, with a national pilot beginning in late 2021. Detailed planning of the pilot is in train. The pilot will run for three years and will aim to assess the end-to-end operability and deliverability of the scheme, and allow us to identify and refine any issues or barriers that occur in practice. To support the development of ELM we are undertaking a number of test and trials. The work is being facilitated by a range of stakeholders, including farmer groups, representative bodies and non-governmental organisations, and it covers a range of geographies and sectors. 47 proposals are being taken forward in phase 1. We are working closely with stakeholders to finalise these. Depending on the complexity of the test or trial we anticipate the first of these commencing shortly. We have received over 200 proposals for phase 2. We will prioritise those proposals that fill gaps in scheme delivery components, outcomes and land management sectors identified from the coverage of the first 47 proposals. At the present time, no proposals have been rejected. We are working with stakeholders to understand how much funding they might require from the Government to support the delivery of the tests and trials in line with value for money principles.

Whisky: Scotland

Martin Whitfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the contribution of the Scotch Whisky industry to (a) rural employment and (b) investment.

David Rutley: The Scotch Whisky industry provides vital employment and investment to communities across Scotland. It is estimated that 7,000 people are directly employed by the industry in rural areas of Scotland.

Whisky: Scotland

Martin Whitfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many people have been employed by the Scotch Whisky industry in the last five years.

David Rutley: More than 10,500 people are directly employed in the Scotch Whisky industry in Scotland, and over 42,000 jobs across the UK are supported by the industry.

Noise: Pollution

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to minimize the effect of human-made noise pollution on animal habitats where it affects animals' ability to communicate.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Under the UK Marine Strategy, the UK Government is working to ensure underwater noise generating human activities do not pose a significant risk to marine ecosystems. We currently have a limited understanding of the distribution of noise in UK seas and its impact on vulnerable species. To address this in relation to sources of continuous noise such as shipping, the UK has established a noise monitoring network, consisting of long term monitoring stations deployed in coastal waters. The information from this monitoring network will be matched with species distributions and used to inform future policy. In order to reduce impacts, developments such as offshore wind farms are required to have pre and post consent monitoring plans which are managed by the Marine Management Organisation. For example, a Marine Mammal Mitigation Plan lists the appropriate mitigation measures that should be utilised during offshore activities that are likely to produce underwater noise and vibration levels capable of potentially causing injury and disturbance to marine mammals. Government departments including Defra and BEIS are working together to look at how underwater noise can be managed more strategically to reduce harm. On land, the Government is committed to ensuring that noise is managed effectively in order to promote good health and quality of life. We have protections in place to avoid significant noise impacts through our planning system, our environmental permitting systems, in vehicle and product standards, and noise abatement legislation. Defra works with other Government departments whose policies could potentially impact on noise levels. National Planning Policy Guidance sets out requirements for noise to be considered for new developments with particular consideration given to development affecting designated sites. Our network of designated sites are afforded the highest level of protection. Planning authorities must consider the potential impact of activities and works on or near these sites before granting consent. Noise may also be considered for certain types of development requiring an Environmental Impact Assessment.

Agriculture: Environment Protection

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the role of Natural England in helping farmers to improve their environment.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Department regularly reviews Natural England’s performance including via formal Ministerial review. Natural England is required to report progress to Defra’s supervisory board and the Secretary of State. Natural England plays an important role in delivering the 25 Year Environment Plan, providing advice to help farmers to improve their environment. Natural England advisers provide valuable advice on how to effectively manage wildlife and habitats, promoting nature conservation and protecting biodiversity. This includes advice to help landowners set up agri-environment agreements and aftercare advice during the lifetime of the agreements, as well as for other projects that such as the ‘Back to the Brink’ species recovery project, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund and other charitable organisations.

Home Office

Randox Testing Services

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to press release of 6 December 2018 by the National Police Chiefs Council, National operation to re-test manipulated forensic samples continues, what proportion of the 10,500 cases identified in that press release as potentially at risk of manipulation because of alleged criminal activity at Randox have been re-tested.

Mr Nick Hurd: The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) coordinates the re-testing programme and they are responsible for providing updated information.

Police: Training

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers in each police force area have attended the Disaster Victim Identification training programme at Dundee University in each of the last five years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Department does not hold this information centrally.

Fire and Rescue Services: Finance

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent representations he has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for fire and rescue services.

Mr Nick Hurd: Fire and rescue services have the resources they need to do their important work. In 2019/2020, fire and rescue services will receive approximately £2.3bn and funding from 2020/21 will form part of forthcoming Spending Review negotiations.

Police: Biometrics

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the statutory basis for the use of facial recognition technology by the police is.

Caroline Nokes: The UK Government remains focussed on ensuring a smooth and orderly withdrawal from the EU with a deal as soon as possible, and we have been clear that we do not want or expect a no deal scenario. However, as a responsible government, we continue to prepare for all scenarios.The Home Office has been planning and preparing for a no deal scenario for some time, and we have contingency plans in place across areas including law enforcement, passports and the border. Whatever the outcome of our exit from the EU, we remain committed to supporting the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals both domestically and internationally. The UK’s first Voluntary National Review (VNR) will be published shortly. The VNR will review UK action both domestically and internationally in support of Goal 16. It will also outline key challenges and next steps, recognising that while progress is being made, there is more work to do.

Biometric Residence Permits

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of waiving the fees for super priority service for a replacement biometric residence permit (BRP) for victims of crime who have had their BRPs stolen.

Caroline Nokes: We have previously considered the merits of whether we should waive the fee for replacement BRPs that have been stolen. We concluded that a fee waiver in these circumstances would not be appropriate for a number of reasons.

Immigrants: English Language

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many criminal investigations have been undertaken into (a) students and (b) other people who were alleged to have cheated in the TOEIC English language test.

Caroline Nokes: The focus of our criminal investigations was on the organised criminal groups operating at a number of colleges or test centres where intelligence supported widespread criminal abuse of the TOEIC test.Inevitably this led to investigators interviewing students and other people who had allegedly cheated the TOEIC test. Of these 3 have been charged with offences relating to the cheating of the TOEIC test and await trial. One other person is due to be charged but that person’s whereabouts is currently unknown. In addition, 5 other test takers admitted cheating the TOEIC test and were deemed suitable for, and accepted, a criminal caution.

Police: Disciplinary Proceedings

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2019 to Question 263906 on Police: Disciplinary Proceedings, what steps he is taking to ensure that the package of measures have been designed to ensure that investigations and proceedings are brought to a conclusion in a timely and proportionate way; and if he will make a statement.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2019 to Question 263906 on Police: Disciplinary Proceedings, what reforms to the police complaints and discipline systems have been made to date.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2019 to Question 263906 on Police: Disciplinary Proceedings, when the delivery of the package of measures will be completed.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 17 June 2019 to Question 263906 on Police: Disciplinary Proceedings, what assessment he has made of how the package of measures will make the police complaints and discipline systems more transparent, efficient and proportionate.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government has developed a comprehensive package of police integrity reforms following two independent reviews and public consultations, and extensive consultation with policing stakeholders. An impact assessment was published during the passage of the Policing and Crime Act 2017.Following the introduction of public misconduct hearings in public, with legally qualified chairs (2015), the Government has extended the police discipline system to former officers and introduced the police barred list (December 2017). In January 2018, reforms to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) were implemented, streamlining decision-making and creating the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). Investigation times have fallen since these changes were introduced.The next phase of reforms will build on these changes, overhauling the police complaints and discipline systems. Changes to simplify processes, for example when making decisions on a case to answer, will make the system more efficient and the police and IOPC will be required to provide a written explanation if an investigation goes beyond 12 months and set out next steps. The police discipline system is being reformed to make it more transparent, including requiring more information to be provided to officers under investigation, and focusing it more on conduct that would warrant a disciplinary sanction, establishing a more proportionate process for matters that fall below that thresholdThese reforms will be introduced when Parliamentary time allows.

Rape

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) released under investigation and (b) released on police bail in cases of rape in each year since 2010.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office does not centrally hold the information requested.From April 2017 the Home Office requested information on a voluntary basis from the police on the number of individuals released on pre-charge bail, broken down by bail length. Data, from a subset of 17 forces, were published as ‘Experimental statistics’ in the latest edition of the ‘Police powers and procedures’ statistical bulletin, available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/751215/police-powers-procedures-mar18-hosb2418.pdfThe data were collected on a mandatory basis from April 2018 and are intended for publication in the next edition of the release, scheduled for October 2019.However, information on the specific offence are not collected, nor are data on cases which resulted in a person being released under investigation.

Vagrancy Act 1824: Arrests

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many arrests have been made under the Vagrancy Act 1824 in each year since 2010.

Mr Nick Hurd: The information requested is not centrally available as the Home Office only collects data on arrests for notifiable offences, that is indictable and triable-either-way offences that may be heard at a Crown Court. Offences under the Vagrancy Act are not notifiable.

Refugees: Homelessness

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to tackle homelessness among newly recognised refugees who are unable to secure housing in the 28 days provided by the Home Office to move-on from asylum accommodation.

Caroline Nokes: The Government has implemented a number of initiatives to ensure that refugees are able to access benefits and housing promptly once any support they have been receiving from the Home Office ends 28 days after the grant of their status.Refugees are eligible to receive assistance with housing from their local authority in the same way as British Citizens or other permanent residents of the UK and are treated as a priority need if they have children or are considered vulnerable. Asylum accommodation providers are already under a contractual duty to refer these cases to the appropriate local authority and from September this year Migrant Help, a voluntary sector organisation funded by the Home Office to provide advice to asylum seekers, will provide additional services to help refugees access local authority housing assistance.Additionally, “Local Authority Asylum Liaison Officers” (LAASLOs) are being piloted in areas with large refugees leaving asylum support and part of their role is to provide assistance to access housing.

Cabinet Office

Meningitis: Death

Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of people who have died from meningitis in each of the last five years.

Kevin Foster: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 52.05 KB)

Kier Group: Finance

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent discussions his Department has had with Kier on the financial situation of that company.

Oliver Dowden: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 24 June 2019.The correct answer should have been:

We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. We continue to monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including Kier. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Oliver Dowden: We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. We continue to monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including Kier. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Kier Group: Redundancy

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assurances his Department has received from Kier that any job losses will not affect public services or projects delivered by Kier.

Oliver Dowden: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 24 June 2019.The correct answer should have been:

We monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including Kier. We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Oliver Dowden: We monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including Kier. We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Kier Group: Redundancy

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions the Government has had with Kier on the effect of job redundancies at Kier on delivery of public services by that company.

Oliver Dowden: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 24 June 2019.The correct answer should have been:

We continue to monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including Kier. We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Oliver Dowden: We continue to monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including Kier. We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Kier Group

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether Kier has indicated to his Department that it plans to terminate any of the public sector contracts it holds.

Oliver Dowden: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 24 June 2019.The correct answer should have been:

We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. Our priority is always to protect the continuity of public services.Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Oliver Dowden: We remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discuss their proposed strategy. Our priority is always to protect the continuity of public services.Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Kier Group: Finance

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assurances Kier has given to the Government that Kier's financial situation will not affect its ability to fulfil the public sector contracts it holds.

Oliver Dowden: We continue to monitor the financial health of all of our strategic suppliers, including KierWe remain in close communication with Kier’s management and will continue to discusstheir proposed strategy.

Kier Group

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the new rules to prevent government suppliers from winning government contracts if they do not pay their suppliers on time are now in force; and whether Kier's recent payment performance falls below the standards expected by those rules.

Oliver Dowden: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 24 June 2019.The correct answer should have been:

From 1 September, in government procurements that are over £5m per annum and subject to the Public Contract Regulations 2015, suppliers will need to demonstrate good payment with their subcontractors. Suppliers that cannot demonstrate a fair, effective and responsible approach to payment in their supply chain should expect to be excluded from the procurement process for major government contracts. The payment performance of all large businesses, including Kier and its relevant corporate entities, is available at www.gov.uk/check-when-businesses-pay-invoices. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Oliver Dowden: From 1 September, in government procurements that are over £5m per annum and subject to the Public Contract Regulations 2015, suppliers will need to demonstrate good payment with their subcontractors. Suppliers that cannot demonstrate a fair, effective and responsible approach to payment in their supply chain should expect to be excluded from the procurement process for major government contracts. The payment performance of all large businesses, including Kier and its relevant corporate entities, is available at www.gov.uk/check-when-businesses-pay-invoices. Kier has a large number of contracts across the private and public sector and we are confident they can continue to deliver quality public services.

Serious Youth Violence Ministerial Taskforce

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on how many occasions the Ministerial taskforce on knife crime has met.

Mr David Lidington: The Prime Minister announced that she was setting up a new Ministerial Taskforce at her Serious Youth Violence Summit in April 2019, and the first meeting took place on 8 May 2019. The Ministerial Taskforce coordinates Government activity and ensures all departments are playing their part in reducing serious violence.

Sikhs: Census

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many representations he has received on the inclusion of Sikh as a separate ethnicity on the census.

Kevin Foster: The Cabinet Office has received a number of representations on the proposed content of the census as set out in the white paper “Help Shape Our Future: The 2021 Census of Population and Housing in England and Wales”. These include the addition of Sikh as a separate ethnicity on the census.

Electoral Register: EU Nationals

Afzal Khan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reasons EU citizens were not issued with an EU election voter registration and declaration form when they voted in local elections.

Kevin Foster: It is for individual Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) to decide how to fulfil their statutory duty to encourage participation by electors in the electoral process in the area in which they act and take the necessary steps to do so.

European Parliament: Elections

Afzal Khan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what support he provided to local authority electoral registration officers to ensure that EU citizens had sufficient time to return their declaration forms to vote in the 2019 European elections.

Kevin Foster: The Government took all the legal steps necessary to prepare for the European Parliament elections and put in place all the legislative and funding elements to enable Returning Officers to make their preparations required for the polls on 23 May. We also worked with Returning Officers and the Electoral Commission and other agencies such as the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (SOLACE) and the Association of Electoral Administrators (AEA) to support the smooth running of the polls. On 5 April the Electoral Commission published guidance for Local Returning Officers and EROs on the upcoming European Parliament elections. In this the Electoral Commission reminded EROs to prepare and issue UC1 forms to EU citizens on the electoral register. It also encouraged EROs to agree plans and timings for postal vote despatch (including how to prioritise the despatch of overseas votes). This latter point covers UK citizens living in EU countries. On 3 May the Electoral Commission published guidance advising EU citizens to avoid registering to vote using unofficial registration sites. In this guidance, they further stated that “any EU citizen who wants to vote in the European Parliamentary election in the UK must also print, complete and return a declaration form stating that they will only vote in the UK.” This guidance also included a link to the Your Vote Matters website where the form could be downloaded.

European Parliament: Elections

Afzal Khan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reason his Department decided not to extend the deadline for EU citizens to return their voter registration and declaration forms for the 2019 European Parliament elections.

Kevin Foster: The latest date in which an EU citizen can submit a European Parliament Voter Registration Form (known as a UC1 form) to register as an elector in the European Parliamentary elections is 12 working days before the date of the election. For the recent European Parliamentary elections that deadline was 7th May. The 12 working day deadline is based on two provisions relating to the application process and the publication of, and alterations to, the register before the election. The provisions are contained in section 13B of the Representation of the People Act 1983 and regulation 29 of the Representation of the People (England and Wales) Regulations 2001; and the equivalent provisions in the Representation of the People (Scotland) Regulations 2001 and Representation of the People (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2008 as applied by Schedule 001 of the European Parliamentary Elections (Franchise of Relevant Citizens of the Union) Regulations 2001. To change the 12 working day deadline would require changes to the legislation. The UC1 form implements a requirement under EU law. EU Council Directive 93/109/EC requires all Member States to send the details of any EU citizens’ declarations to the state they are a citizen of “sufficiently in advance of polling day” to ensure an EU citizen does not vote twice in the same European Parliamentary election. This is not a new requirement and has been in place for previous European Parliamentary elections. On 5 April the Electoral Commission published guidance for Local Returning Officers and EROs on the upcoming European Parliament elections. In this the Electoral Commission reminded EROs to prepare and issue UC1 forms to EU citizens on the electoral register. It also encouraged EROs to agree plans and timings for postal vote despatch (including how to prioritise the despatch of overseas votes). This latter point covers UK citizens living in EU countries. On 3 May the Electoral Commission published guidance advising EU citizens to avoid registering to vote using unofficial registration sites. In this guidance, they further stated that “any EU citizen who wants to vote in the European Parliamentary election in the UK must also print, complete and return a declaration form stating that they will only vote in the UK.” This guidance also included a link to the Your Vote Matters website where the form could be downloaded.

Treasury

Employment: Debts

Catherine West: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to encourage employers to (a) raise awareness of debt issues among employees and (b) support employees to access free debt advice.

John Glen: The Government has taken steps to prevent problem debt from occurring and to support those who have fallen into it. Funding for free debt advice has risen to almost £56million in England this year. That’s enough to fund 560,000 debt advice sessions, an increase of 85,000 from last year. To increase access to free financial guidance, the Government has established the new Money and Pensions Service (MAPS). MAPS supports employers to help employees manage their money, including through encouraging referrals to free debt advice. MAPS will publish its national strategy on improving people’s financial capability later this year.

Members: Correspondence

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Greenwich and Woolwich of 16 April 2019 on Sharia-compliant home purchase plans.

John Glen: I replied to the hon. Member on 24 April and a copy has been sent by email.

Employment

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU with no deal on his Department’s ability to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 8 in the UK.

Robert Jenrick: Leaving the EU, with or without a deal, will not affect our commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The UK’s first Voluntary National Review (VNR) will be published shortly. The VNR will review UK action both domestically and internationally in support of the SDGs, including Goal 8. It will also outline key challenges and next steps, recognising that while progress is being made, there is more work to do.

Mineworkers' Pension Scheme

Grahame Morris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June 2019 to Question 264384 on Mineworkers' Pension Scheme, whether reference was made to the Motion passed in the House on Monday 10 June 2019 on the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme in the letter from Andrew Stephenson MP.

Elizabeth Truss: The letter from Andrew Stephenson MP to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme was sent on Friday 7th June. As this was before the Motion passed in the House on Monday 10th June, the letter does not make any reference to the Motion.

UK Trade With EU

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 2 April 2019 to Question 236246, how many Economic Operator Registration and Identification numbers have been issued by HMRC to (a) VAT-registered and (b) non-VAT-registered UK exporters to EU countries in preparation for the UK leaving the EU.

Jesse Norman: UK traders that only trade with the EU will need a UK Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number if the UK leaves the EU without a deal. Latest HMRC-validated data shows that 72,000 UK EORI numbers have been issued between December 2018 and 16 June 2019. A full breakdown of data to distinguish between VAT registered and non-VAT registered UK exporters is not available.

EU Budget

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the contributions the UK would be legally required to pay into the budget of the European Union in (a) 2019 and (b) 2020 in the event that the UK left the EU without a deal.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government has been clear from the outset of negotiations that if we left the EU without a deal, the UK has obligations to the EU, and the EU obligations to the UK that will survive the UK’s withdrawal, and that these would need to be resolved.

Peat Bogs: Environment Protection

Helen Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 6 June 2019 to Question 259082 on Peat Bogs: Environment Protection, when the 2019 Spending Review will take place

Elizabeth Truss: As the Chancellor announced at Spring Statement, if a deal with the EU is agreed, the 2019 Spending Review will conclude alongside an Autumn Budget.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2019 to Question 261211 on Immigration: EU Nationals, for what reason the information requested is not recorded in a data set that that can be interrogated through the automated checks for the EU Settlement Scheme.

Elizabeth Truss: HMRC and the Home Office have worked closely together to ensure that information provided for the automatic residence checks is sufficient to provide a response for the majority of applications. After taking account of the other information sources available to the Home Office, tax credit records have not been included as they would only be relevant to a small number of applicants. Individuals that received tax credits during a period of residence that is not validated automatically will still be able to provide documents directly to the Home Office as evidence of their residence.

Social Services: Finance

Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of social care funding for people living with dementia.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government monitors outcomes from social care closely. The quality of care continues to increase, with 81% of care homes and 86.5% of domiciliary care agencies rated good or outstanding by the CQC as of December 2018. And, over the last three years the Government has given councils access to up to around £10bn dedicated additional funding for adult social care.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Sports: Young People

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the press release of 1 April 2019 entitled Government to harness power of sport to tackle youth violence, what commitment the Government has received from (a) the Premier League on increasing participating in the Premier League Kicks campaign; and how many more children will participate in that scheme, (b) Sport England on increasing participation in crime hotspots; and how many more children will participate in such schemes and (c) sports’ organisations including basketball, boxing and cycling and community-based sports charities on engaging young people in hard to reach areas.

Mims Davies: Following the Prime Minister's summit on serious violence in April this year, government has been working with the Premier League, Sport England, National Governing Bodies and other organisations in the sport and physical activity sector to explore what more can be done to use sport and physical activity to tackle serious violence, including knife crime. Using Sport England insight and Home Office hot spot data, action will be targeted at the areas that need it most. Detail is still being developed and further information will follow over the summer.

House of Commons Commission

Members' Staff: General Practitioners

Frank Field: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, whether Members' staff can (a) register with and (b) access an on-site medical doctor.

Tom Brake: The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

House of Commons: Security

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, for what reasons security officers in the House of Commons are entitled to a break of two hours and 15 minutes in each eight hour shift; and what assessment the Commission has made of the comparative value for money of such contracts.

Tom Brake: The House of Commons Commission has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority

Members: Internet

Royston Smith: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, what estimate his Department has made on the potential cost incurred by MPs' offices in answering web-based inquiries generated by (a) 38 Degrees and (b) other websites in the last 12 months.

Mr Charles Walker: I have asked IPSA to provide this reply.IPSA is the statutory body responsible for regulating and paying the salaries, business costs and expenses of MPs. This includes regulating and paying the salaries of staff members who work for MPs. Each MP is allocated a budget from which their staffing costs are paid. The current staffing budget for MPs in London constituencies is £166,930; and for non-London MPs, the budget is £155,930. In the 2018-19 financial year, MPs spent £91.1 million on staffing costs, including employment costs and other staffing services. IPSA does not hold information on the cost attributable to staff members carrying out specific activities such as responding to web-based inquiries generated by 38 Degrees or other websites.